Squire
by Dakaath
Summary: A Knight is more than just a person with a sword, shield, and shiny armor. Knights were heroes, the proto-hunter's of Remnant. And though they passed into history, Jaune Arc was determined to be one. First he had to figure out what that meant though….
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY, or any other fictional characters that might make bit appearances.

* * *

"Crocea Mors came around, and with a mighty swing your great-great grandfather cut through the Tyrant Scale's last head, saving the Princess!" Isabella Arc finished the story with a grand twirl of her arm to mimic the feat, even as a sleepy Jaune cheered her on.

"Yay! Tell it again Mom, tell it again!" he begged even as he tried to climb out from beneath the covers of his bed to reenact the daring fight with his toy sword. His clothes covered chair looked suspiciously like a Grimm in the low light, if you squinted and ignored the bright blue covering. It was just begging to be slayed.

Isabella laughed, and reached down to ruffle his hair, incidentally placing her other arm on the edge of his bed so he couldn't escape. "No, that was the last story. Now it's time to go to bed."

"But-" Whatever argument Jaune was going to make was cut off as a mighty yawn ripped its way out. He slumped back into his pillows, knowing that there went any chance of his mom actually telling him another tale, or letting him play a bit more. That didn't stop him from squirming when she went to kiss him though, not that it stopped her. With a wet smooch on his forehead, she tucked the covers up around him. "'Grandad was a knight, right?"

She gave him a small smile. "While you're forgetting several greats, not even he was old enough to be a knight like you're thinking of. He just used a sword and shield. Now, enough distractions, I'm going to turn off the lights now. And I better not find you out of bed playing again, understand mister?" She gave him a mock stern look, but he knew she was serious. Last time that happened he'd been without dessert for a week.

As Isabella reached for the lights, after ensuring his Crocea Mor shaped nightlight was plugged in and working, she paused when her son spoke. "Nu-uh. Granddad was a knight, he used a sword and shield and saved princesses and killed dragons." She couldn't stop a smile from spreading over her face at that childish logic, and the certainty behind the statement. To be young and trouble free again...or as much as she'd been allowed to be back then.

But Jaune's next words stole the smile from her face. "And I'm going to be just like him when I grow up." As she shut the door to his room, she prayed that he'd forget that dream come morning.

* * *

But Jaune didn't forget. For the next three years he clung to that goal with the tenacity of a child, that special kind of stubbornness only the young at heart, unburdened by anything else, can achieve. He pestered his parents for new stories about his great-great-grandfather, asked his sisters to take him to the Vale Library to look up knights, and was constantly running around with a wooden Crocea Mors his father had given him. Everything was about knights and princesses to him, Hunters and policemen having fallen to the side in his imaginary world.

While his classmates focused on the Blue Avenger or whoever the hunter of the day was, he was diving into ancient children's books from the dusty back shelves of the libraries and talking about the Green Knight or The Black Prince. Those were close enough to Hunter names to get the children involved, or at least tolerate his obsession, but as he dug deeper and pulled out even more obscure figures such as the Faunus Knight James Hawkwood or Guesclin they left him alone to his weirdness. The only reason he wasn't left totally alone was the recent release of the toy models of the newest Atlesian robots. As they were called the Knight Series, he was as into them as any of his classmates, and their imaginary wars filled the halls of their homes.

And then came his seventh birthday. Both his parents made sure to be home, not taking anything but local missions in the time leading up to it. While they tried to make every one of their children's' birthdays, it wasn't always possible with eight of them. But the seventh birthday was special, and without fail they'd never missed one. Violet, Shani, and Sienna had made it home from Beacon for the day to visit him, but Azure and Indigo were at Signal, and couldn't get a transport back from Patch in time. With Bianca in Mistral, and Olivia at home until Signal next year, the Arc family was as complete as it was going to get until the next vacation break.

There were gifts and cake, and several of his parents' teammates stopped by with their own kids. Children ran screaming around on a sugar high, chasing after and fighting the waves of sand Grimm created by Jacques Arc's semblance. To civilians, it might have been too much, but for Hunters' children it was par for the course. Classics like 'Put the Spear in the Boarbatusk' and a Nevermore shaped piñata rounded out the day.

That night, as Jaune crawled into bed in his new blue, fuzzy, onesie, his mom came to tuck him in. He wasn't having any of it, he was seven, almost an adult now. "But Mom, I'm too old to be tucked in, I'm seven now!"

"Well, I guess that means you're too old for a story as well then?" Isabella asked, as she slowly turned around to leave.

Jaune's eyes grew wide. "No! I'm not too old!" Stories were the only good part of going to bed.

"Well, alright then." Stepping in, Isabella sat on the edge of his bed, and proceeded to tell him his favorite story about his great-great-grandfather and the Tyrant Scale of Freshwater. As he had grown older the story had grown as well, details were fleshed out, and more of the truth was revealed. The enemy raid that devastated the town was told, and the awful follow up Grimm attacks as they sensed the town's sorrow and desperation. How the girl he rescued was the last of her family, the rest lost to the enemy or Grimm, leaving her alone in the world. How his grandfather had arrived too late to stop the first attacks, but still early enough to lead a desperate fighting retreat to the city of Vale, with people getting picked off by Grimm the entire time. In the end, his great-great grandfather had still won, saving those he could, including his future wife, but the full price of that victory was told to Jaune.

But with the truth of the horror of those times came tales of strength. Of how the Mayor's daughter had refused to give into despair, distracting the Tyrant Scale to let others flee, and being a constant support to the remainder of the town. A pillar of strength so strong she impressed the leader of the men sent to save them.

In fact, all his stories had changed like that over the years as his parents slowly stopped hiding him from the truth of the world, that Remnant was a dark and vicious place, and while good could triumph, often evil did as well. In Remnant, naiveté could kill, and his parents had sworn to never hide the truth.

And so, as Isabella finished the story, she asked her son one final time. "Do you still want to be a Hunter?"

Jaune nodded, determination shining on his face as he looked up at her, completely at odds with his fuzzy onesie. "I do Mom. I want to be a Knight like granddad, and to help protect the innocent like you and Dad."

Isabella started down at him for the longest time, trying to etch that happy, smiling face into her memory, knowing it might be the last time she ever saw it directed at her. But if that was the price she paid, so be it. "Alright, your training starts tomorrow."

* * *

"Wha?" It was still dark outside when Jaune woke up, which wasn't right. His parents had told him before, don't get up until you can at least see the sun. Getting up at night was only for emergencies.

"It's time for training Jaune, wake up." Isabella shook her son again as he tried to burrow further under the covers.

"But it's dark out!" And it really was, he couldn't even see the tree that sat right outside his window.

"That doesn't matter now that you're seven Jaune. Now, get up and put on the clothes I left for you. You need to be downstairs in five minutes." Ripping the covers off him, Isabella pointed at the stack of exercise clothes sitting on his chair.

It was a minute after she left that her words finally hit him. He was going to train! This was it, he was really going to be a knight! Hurriedly sliding off the bed, Jaune grabbed the clothes and pulled them on before dashing for the bathroom.

A few minutes later he was down in the kitchen where his Mom was waiting with water. "Drink this, then we get started."

He guzzled it down, curious about what they'd be doing. He knew his sisters would normally train with his Mom in the morning, so where was Olivia? Before he could ask, she took the empty glass from him and gestured to the door. "Now we run."

The forest behind their house was one of the few safe ones, tucked away behind the patrols, sensors, and camera. But even then the kids knew they weren't supposed to go there alone. But Jaune wasn't alone as they ran through the dirt trails. And ran. And ran. They ran until it hurt to breath, and his shirt was soaked with sweat. And when it finally felt like he couldn't run any more, when they were still surrounded by trees and shrubs, they kept running, or at least tried to.

Jaune collapsed, his leg giving out from under him. A yelp forced its way through his clenched teeth as his knee skidded on the ground, turning bloody under the assault of the twigs and rocks. Tears started to pour down his cheeks as he turned over, pulling his leg close to him as he tried to pull out a larger rock embedded in the skin. Instinctively he looked around for his Mom, like he had the hundreds of other times he'd fallen down.

"Get up." Isabella still looked perfectly fine, not even a drop of sweat on her brow from the run. But that wasn't what bothered Jaune, he knew she was strong after all. What bothered him was the fact she was refusing to look at him.

Jaune hiccupped as he abruptly stopped crying, his mind not comprehending what he'd just heard. He didn't understand it. He was hurt...bleeding, and his mom was right there, but instead of help….

"Get up. If you want to be a Hunter, then you need to run. If you want to give up, we can go home now." She was still refusing to look at him…

Lost...he felt lost...What was he supposed to do? She was supposed to help him...she had always helped him, even when Dad punished him...and now…

"Jaune? Are you giving up?" There was no tone in her voice, no love, nothing. It sounded just like one of the robot policemen they had showed off at school.

Jaune didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he could do. He stood up.

And all Isabella did was say, "Keep running."

They did, back through the trees, back to the house where he threw up on the grass. He could see his father working in the kitchen, items whirling around as he used his Semblance as an extra dozen hands while cooking something, probably their lunches. All he wanted to do was go inside and rest, to curl back up in bed and forget about school.

But it wasn't over yet.

Isabella was standing over him, and he blinked wearily up at her, feeling the sweat stinging his eyes, shirt damp with splattered vomit, the stomach acid burning his throat. She handed him a bottle of water. "Swish and spit, then small sips."

He wanted to guzzle it immediately; once he cleared out the taste of vomit it was better than any soda, but his stomach protested the first huge chug, and he nearly heaved again. After that he took the smaller swallows until the water was almost gone.

"That's enough. We have more to do." The bottle was set by the side, and the workout started again.

Stretches, pushups and crunches of all types, leg lifts, planks. The exercises seemed endless. And then they finally stopped, because he stopped. His plank broke, his arms giving out, and he couldn't stop the face plant. He tried to roll over, but his body refused to budge, and so he sat there, face in the grass, tasting the dirt. He felt hands turning him over, replacing the green grass with a view of the now light sky above, even if the edges were tinged with blackness… Or was that just his eyes? Were the Grimm coming to steal his vision?

He wanted to ask mom, but all that came out was a grunt. Water dribbled over his face as she opened the bottle over him. But it wasn't her...it was…

"Alright Kiddo, can't sleep now, you've got school to get ready for." His father's hands were under his arms, lifting him as effortlessly as he would lift a stuffed toy.

Jaune swayed unsteadily, his father's hand on his shoulder keeping him balanced, before staggering into the kitchen.

Olivia, his youngest sister, was eating breakfast as he walked in. When she saw him, pale and sweating, with a vomit splattered shirt and bleeding knee, she turned as white as a ghost and rushed from the room, not pausing even as her discarded bowl hit the ground. The sturdy plastic bounced several times before rolling to a stop in front of him.

Jaune stared down at it, mind blank, before the thought that maybe he should pick it up slowly filtered into his mind. But he just couldn't muster the energy, and just looked at it, before his father's semblance whisked it out of site. "Here, drink this."

A cup was thrust into his vision, filled with a thick, green liquid that looked more like it belonged in a toxic waste dump then a cup. "I have to drink that?" Jaune's stomach roiled in protest at the thought...or maybe it was hunger. "Can't I just have some Pumpkin Pete's?"

Jack laughed, a deep one starting from belly, and that ended up shaking Jaune from the one hand still sitting on his shoulder. "Sorry, despite their motto of 'Breakfast of Champions,' it's not the healthiest. This here special concoction has everything a growing boy like you needs, and its Dad approved. So pinch your nose and bottoms up."

Seeing Jaune wasn't moving, Jack started to push the glass against his chest. "Jaune… Jaune...Jaune...Jaune...Jaune…"

Knowing his Dad wouldn't stop until he actually drank it, Jaune reached a hand up, absently noting his arm was no longer shaking, and grabbed the glass. It was heavier than he expected, and bubbled thickly.

Following his Dad's order, he pinched his nose, he threw the concoction back. He almost gagged, but then realized it actually didn't taste that bad...more fruity than anything, like a smoothie. Most importantly though, it stopped his stomach from aching, and he hurriedly swallowed the rest, tilting the cup and his head back to get the last few drops.

"See? Listen to your Dad, I know my foods. Now, hurry up and shower and change, your bus will be here soon."

Olivia met him at the top of the stairs. "Jaune, are you okay?" Even as she asked she was bending down to look at his knee.

"M'okay. I just fell when I was running. I'm going to be a hunter someday, I've got to be tough." He still felt exhausted, his words almost unclear.

"When you came in and I saw the blood and Dad was half carrying you I thought…" Olivia paused for a second, looking up at him. "Well, what I thought doesn't matter." Being almost twice his age she had a good foot of height on him when she stood back up. But then she crouched, looking him in the eyes.

Her blue eyes, the same blue eyes he had, and their father, and half their sisters, stared at him, looking out from a face that looked so similar to his own. But they were partially red, her voice sounded different, almost like she had been crying. "Jaune, promise me that if you get hurt, that if you want to stop...that if Mom...well, promise me Jaune that you'll let me know."

He didn't know what was wrong, so he gave her his biggest smile. "I will, but it's going to be fine, I'm going to be a hunter, just like you!"

Quicker than a snake her hand reached out to ruffle his hair, before she pulled him into a hug, ignoring how her tee-shirt got dirty in the process. Her words were muffled with her face buried in his hair, but he could still make them out. "Yeah, just like me. Now," she let him go, stepping back. "Hurry and get ready, hunters can't be late for school."

As he rushed off to the bathroom, he missed the brief flash of anger that appeared on her face.

* * *

With his Dad's order to eat all his lunch still ringing in his head, Jaune stepped off the bus to school. It was no combat academy, merely the normal school all Vale children had to attend. He'd thought it would be harder to stay awake, but whatever was in the breakfast his father had given him left him feeling fine, and the day passed without issue, and sadly, without any mention of knights or hunters.

At home it was the same rules as always, no playing until his homework was finished. But once he had finished it, he was free, or was supposed to be. "Not yet Jaune."

"But Mom, I finished everything due for tomorrow."

"And for the rest of the week?" Her stern voice and the fact she had her arms crossed let Jaune know that he shouldn't even consider lying to her, not that he would. He'd learned that last year with the science project.

"And the rest of the week. Even math." He hated math, history was so much cooler.

Isabella nodded approvingly before heading over to the bookshelf next to the table he was working at. Pulling out one battered book, she dropped it in front of him. "What's this?" It looked like one of those boring books, the kind with only a few pictures and tiny print. Only knights made those books fun to read.

"This," she stressed by picking the book up and opening it to the first chapter, showing a picture of a wolf like creature Jaune recognized as a Beowolf, "is your hunter homework. Read chapter one and take good notes. I want a definition of every underlined word in there."

Definitions, that meant the dictionary, which meant having to look up three new words for every required one. Why couldn't they use normal words in their descriptions? It was always so much easier to ask one of his sisters, or a librarian. With a sigh Jaune headed over to the shelf to get the book. He couldn't wait until he got his own Scroll and could just google things.

* * *

Jaune was finally settling into a routine of backbreaking exercise in the morning, school, homework, hunter work, and an early bedtime to be able to do it again the next day. He hadn't hung out with his friends since his birthday, having almost no time, but that was okay cause he was going to be a Hunter. So what if even the other hunters' kids hadn't started training yet? He had his books for the little bit of free time he had. And Mom and Dad had both been staying around, something that was rare outside birthdays; normally at least one of them would have gone on a mission by now.

So it was a little bit of a surprise that the doorbell rang, and then rang again. Olivia wasn't home, still at school, but Mom and Dad should have been home. Leaving his school work on the table, Jaune cautiously made his way to the door. He'd been told several times not to answer it by himself, but surely just peeking through was okay?

Unable to reach the peephole, he instead twitched aside the curtains. At seeing who was out there, he started fumbling with the various deadbolts and locks, trying to open them as fast as possible. Finally managing to get them all unlocked he threw the door open and dived out.

"Bianca!" Jaune crashed into the woman standing there, not even staggering her as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Immediately he was picked up and twirled around until his stomach started to protest.

"Hey tiny Jay, still got that weak stomach I see."

Staggering to the side, Jaune took a second to steady himself before turning to glare up at the blonde woman. "I'm not tiny, and Mom says motion sickness is common!"

Bianca laughed, reaching down in an exaggerated motion to ruffle his hair. "Sure, whatever you say Jay. Now, has Violet stopped by yet?"

Jaune's eyes lit up. Not one, but two of his sisters were coming by to visit, and it wasn't even a holiday. "No, not yet. What about Shani and Sienna, are they coming to?"

Bianca's face tightened for a minute before she smiled again. "What not happy with just your two oldest sisters?"

Jaune frantically shook his head, he recognized a trap when he heard one. "No, no, no, having you visit is great. You're my favorite!"

Bianca arched an eyebrow. "Uh-huh, that's not what Olivia said. Anyway, no, the Twins can't make it. They had...other things at Beacon. But I did bring my team." That's when Jaune realized there was actually a man standing with Bianca, and looking very amused.

"I finally get to meet your team?!" Jaune stared at the man with fascination, happy to finally get to meet some of his sister's team. He was tall, his curly hair hanging down near his shoulders, and a pencil thin mustache graced his upper lip.

But he was smiling as he bent down, offering his hand. "Hello, my name is Indigo Montoya. I've heard a lot about you, Bianca can't stop talking about her little brother, at least when she's not teasing me about having the same name as her sister."

"That's cause I'm awesome," announced Jaune. "And I'm going to be a knight someday."

"Oh-ho, really? Then can you tell me what this is?" Reaching to his side, Indigo drew his weapon with a flourish. The long silver blade glinted in the light.

"That's a rapier, but it's not a real sword. It's a frog-poker." Jaune said it with all the assurance and confidence a seven year old can have when they know they're absolutely right.

Indigo's mouth dropped open in astonishment, even as Bianca closed her eyes, unable to believe what Jaune had just said. "I like him."

Now it was Bianca's turn to have her mouth drop open in surprise, she knew just how much Indigo prized his sword. But she quickly regained her composure, shooting Indigo a look over Jaune's head. "Anyway, enough of that. Jaune, I need you to go pack, okay? We're going on a trip to visit Indigo on Patch Island."

"Really?" He'd never been outside Vale before, not even to Mistral to visit his Grandmother.

Bianca smiled down at him. "Really really. Now hurry and grab a jacket, it's colder on Patch. Olivia is waiting for us with your suitcase."

As he scampered into the house, Indigo turned to Bianca. "Think we have time?"

She just shook her head. "With Violet distracting her, either we have plenty of time, or we have no time and it wouldn't make a difference." She sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"Still thinking it should be you out there?" asked Indigo; he knew his teammate well enough to know what she wasn't saying. "You both agreed it had to be you getting Jaune; she's faster than you. And if all goes to plan, she'll never need to actually use it."

Bianca sighed again before heading toward the house, talking as she walked. "Hard to beat lightning in a race; I know that. But that doesn't stop me from thinking it should be me...I'm her older sister, and she's out there with my partner. But there's no guarantee this will work."

Indigo stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "Work or not, we're here for you, and so's your sister's team. There's always plan B."

* * *

"Got your bag Jay?" asked Olivia. She'd been waiting at the Dustplane stop as promised with both their bags.

"Indigo has it for me." Jaune pointed to the Signal Academy bag, a birthday gift from Azure, which Indigo carried easily in one hand.

"The little man was looking a bit tired with it, and I didn't want it to get lost before we made it to the Dust Plane," said Indigo after he saw Bianca's look.

"Not you too, I'm not short!" Jaune would have hit Indigo, but the man was carrying his bag.

"Sorry Little Jay, but until you grow, you'll always be…" Bianca trailed off, making Jaune turn to where she was looking at.

"Mom! You came to see us off." She was standing right next to the terminal entrance where their Dustplane was waiting.

He ran to give her a hug, Bianca's grab just missing his shoulder. "Sorry Jaune, the trip will have to wait."

"But Mom, we were going to see Indigo. And I was going to get to ride my first Dustplane!" Jaune gave her his best puppy dog eyes, but all she did was give him a gentle smile and shake her head no.

"Maybe for one of their birthdays your father can take you out to visit them. But for now don't you want to go home and see Violet and the rest of your sisters' teams?"

"Ah, but we just left there, and the bus is already gone…" Jaune had really wanted to ride on the Dustplane, seeing his dream school of Signal and his sisters would have been great too.

"Don't worry, there's a cab waiting outside for us. And I'm sure Bianca and her teammate will meet us there?" Isabella looked at the pair over Jaune's head, her expression challenging them to say otherwise.

For a second it looked like Bianca would, but after a moment's consideration and a look the happily smiling Jaune, she just nodded. "Come on Olivia, you're riding with us."

* * *

"Whoa, you're even bigger than Dad! Can I ride on your shoulders? I bet I could see Beacon from up there."

Fezwick Legume, Bianca's giant of a teammate, let out a loud laugh, and swooping up Jaune with one hand, deposited the boy on his shoulders.

"There, now you're taller than Bianca," pointed out Buttercup, Bianca's final teammate and Fezwick's partner. "Make sure to point that out to her, will you?"

Jaune laughed, tugging slightly on Fezwick's hair to stay upright. "Quick Fezwick, let's show Bianca. Oh, and ruffle her hair! Now that I'm taller, I'm supposed to do that. Or at least that's what she always told me."

"Alright, but get ready to duck, it's going to be a tight fit." Fezwick had to nearly go on his knees to get through the door with Jaune on his shoulders, and even inside had to crouch while Jaune ducked.

Thankfully for his knees, he only had to do it a minute before, "Fezwick, quick put me down! I want to play with the dogs!"

"What about me? Am I chopped liver?" demanded a voice from the other side of the room.

Jaune froze mid scramble, eliciting a grunt from Fezwick when he accidentally stepped on the man's fingers. "Violet! Your eyes are glowing!' And they were, her normally brown eyes, inherited from their mother, were replaced by a bright and gleaming purple, the light of which seemed to almost spill over into the lines of her face.

His sister laughed, scooping him off the crouching Fezwick and pulling him into a hug. "Of course, don't all awesome people glow?'

"But I don't glow!" protested Jaune, even as he hugged his sister back.

"You're too young, and short, to be awesome. Now, didn't you want to see the dogs? You remember the first rule right?"

"Always check with the owner before approaching a strange dog," recited Jaune dutifully, having had the lesson repeated to him over and over again.

"That's right, so, why don't you go over and ask Rob and Jon if it's okay to pet Greywind and Ghost?" Violet pointed to the two men sitting on the couch behind their massive war hounds.

"Like they're going to pass up a chance to show off the loves of their lives. They won't mind kid, promise," said the third man on the couch.

In sync, the two men elbowed the third, making Violet snigger. "Theon, if he gets bit one day by a strange dog, I'm blaming you."

"Better a dog then a Beowolf." Everyone turned stare at him. "What's with the evil eyes? I'm just sayin."

"Enough of that. Now Jaune, you've met your sisters' teams. So, go finish your homework." At seeing his pleading expression, Isabella gave a small smile. "Just your homework for tonight. The rest can wait until tomorrow. In the meantime, I have something to talk about with your sisters."

* * *

By the time he finished his neglected homework, with Buttercup's help, it was dinner time, Jacques having gotten a truly massive amount of takeout to satisfy all the Hunters in the house.

And while Jaune might not have always known what his sisters were thinking, he did know when they were angry. It was a survival trait after all, between seven of them and a limited number of bathrooms. And they were angry, in fact, if he had to guess, everyone was angry. But they continued to smile and laugh all through dinner, and every time he started to ask, they'd ask him a question, or one of the dogs would nudge his leg and beg for food. It wasn't until afterward, when they were all getting ready to leave, the he got a moment alone with his sisters.

"Here Jaune." Violet passed him a piece of paper. "This is all our scroll numbers."

"Who's?" asked Jaune curiously, he already had all his sisters' numbers after all. "Your teams?"

Bianca shook her head. "No, Violet just gave you our emergency numbers. Mission or not, if we're in range of a communications tower, we'll get your call. So Jaune, if it's an emergency, if you want to give up being a Hunter, or you still want to be one but something happens in training, call us. Try our normal numbers first, and Sienna and Shani and Azure, they're close enough to help right away. But if you can't reach them, call one of those numbers, and we'll here as soon as we can get a Dustship."

"Even if we need to hijack one, it's a promise,' added Violet, even as she knelt down and pulled him into a hug, with Bianca engulfing them both in her arms. Jaune could feel a wetness on his cheek as she did. "Are you crying? What's wrong?"

Neither sister answered right away, instead they just continued to hold him for a minute, and sensing the situation, even if he didn't understand, Jaune let them, instead of trying to squirm out like he normally would. Finally, they pulled back, Bianca wiping off her cheek with one hand as they did. "Nothing, just you're my baby brother, and I'm going to miss you. I love you, you know that, right Jaune?'

"Of course, you named me, how could you not love me? And I love you both too." Despite having just gotten out of a bone crushing group hug, Jaune darted back to give them both a quick hug around the middle.

"Right tiny Jay. And remember, if you need anything, call us. The Twins and Azure are just a quick trip away."

With that final comment, both his sisters stepped outside to join their teams, giving one last wave as they disappeared down Vale's darkened street. Jaune continued to wave at them from the doorway for several more minutes before his Dad placed a hand on his shoulder. "Time for bed Jaune."

"Alright Dad. It was nice of them to come to visit with their teams, wasn't it? I thought we'd never get to meet them."

"Of course, always a rare treat when your sisters visit." Jaune didn't see the look on his Dad's face as he headed upstairs, or the look that was shared with his mother.

* * *

Scholar's Notes:

I'm blessed to be able to travel. Or perhaps I should say cursed with a bone deep desire to dig into the past. I don't know how people aren't constantly questioning what came before. So much has been lost, untold kingdoms consumed by the Grimm, their remains ground down into so much dust. Is everything we do know merely recreating the glories of the past? Or are we building on the shoulders of giants, scrambling ever upward, knowing to falter is to be consumed by the menace that has haunted us from before whatever history we've managed to dig up?

And so, in a time when most citizens are content behind their walls, living life without ever seeing the threat of Grimm, I will venture out into their world. Into the darkness between the lights of civilization to see what truths can be uncovered, what mysteries answered? Or perhaps I will merely add to them, one more person lost to our hostile world.

* * *

Author's Note:

So, before we start, I just want to give a basic telling of what inspired this, and discuss a few things. First, I'll be grateful for any feedback you care to give. I'm trying to improve my writing, and would love feedback on anything from how it flows to pacing to characterization to dialogue. Basically, anything and everything. I'll admit, I struggle with originality. So, some of this might seem familiar, as I tend to build and expand on what the original story shows, adding in elements of plot points from other things I've read. And I've read a lot. So kudos if you see the various things I've added from other works, some are obvious, some aren't.

This story was inspired by several things. First is obviously RWBY itself, which I was introduced to thanks to Ryuugi's (rgm005) wonderful story, "The Games We play." I've borrowed part of his Jaune's backstory for basis of mine, as I've found he has one of the most fleshed out and imaginative takes on the RWBY world. He also gets the whole death world part of the setting, which a lot of writers seem to miss.

Second, is from my involvement with the SCA, an international organization dedicated to researching and re-creating the arts and skills of pre-17th-century Europe. Though I'm relatively new to it, one thing that stuck out to me was the fact that Knights in that organization are extremely proud (And rightly so in most cases) of their skill. And you better not call yourself a knight or use their symbols of rank unless you've earned it. Basically, the same as calling yourself a black belt in karate without holding that rank.

This ties into the fact that it seemed every other story I read with Jaune in it called him a knight.

So, now you have this story, which will be about Jaune actually trying to be a knight.

And thanks to College Fool and Coeur Al'Aran. Amazing stories like theirs are what inspire me to do more than just read, even if my works pale in comparison.


	2. Chapter 2

"Alright son, you have a choice to make." His father was looking like Jacques, the serious and legendary hunter who had killed every monster in the book, not the fun loving, nacho obsessed Jack he normally was, and it worried Jaune. The last time he had looked this serious was when Olivia announced she was transferring from Beacon to Atlas.

He immediately sat down at the table. "What's up?"

"Well, you're approaching the time we'd normally register you for Signal-"

Jaune cut him off before he could continue. "I'm going to be a hunter Dad. Nothing you or Mom can say will stop me, not after everything I had to go through."

A held up hand stopped anything more he was going to say. "I know that, and your Mom knows that. And we also know you're still obsessed with the whole 'knight' thing." Jaune felt rather insulted at hearing his father describe his dream like that, but for a second Jack peaked through, the little grin on his father's face letting him know he was teasing. "So we wanted to give you the option of skipping Signal and training with us until Beacon instead."

"No." Jaune didn't even have to think about it. This was his chance of getting out of the house, away from...just away, and he wasn't going to give it up.

"Wait let me explain…" Jacques grabbed his arm before he could finish fully standing up. "Damn, I knew I should have made a PowerPoint. There's a reason I make your Mom give all the reports."

Seeing Jaune take his seat again, he ran his hand through his hair as he tried to gather his thoughts, a habit his son had picked up as well. "Look, first of all, I would be the one training you. Signal doesn't have any sword and shield users. Plenty of gun-swords, staff-swords, fire-swords, and spear-swords, but no sword and shield pairs. You're a lot more defensive then the styles they teach are, more old school. Less about the fancy footwork and more of a concentration on a solid foundation. And trust me, I called some contacts to check. Now, me on the other hand? I can help you."

Jaune just gave his father a flat look. "You use a hammer, a giant hammer. And bombs, can't forget those."

"Yes, and I'm awesome. But you also forget, Crocea Mors is a family heirloom!" Raising his finger in the air, he marked a point on an invisible scoreboard, before pointing at Jaune. "I trained with your grandfather, my father, with that sword and shield back in the day, and I still remember the program he had me do. From using a pell properly to climbing the ladder exercises. Plus the rest of my team and your mother's team both volunteered to help you out whenever they're around, Keppel even said he'd throw snowballs at you for blocking practice. So when I'm on a mission, they'll be someone to train with you. I'll make sure of that. And that's just the first benefit."

Jaune was definitely interested now. Learning how to use a shield properly took work, not just taking hits on it, but knowing how to hold it for proper coverage, tilt it to deflect attacks, close with it, even bash with it. They were tools designed for fighting over humans, to use them against Grimm you needed to know how to utilize aura given strength proper, and how to use physics to your benefit. All his research said there was an art to it...and having a shield that could collapse and expand nearly instantly just expanded the combat potential. And there was no way his mother would let him half-ass practice; she knew he wasn't going to quit.

"Now, here's the second benefit." Serious Jacques was back now. "I've listened to you talk about your dream for years. I know you want to be a knight, and I know that means more than just wielding Crocea Mors. You'll have not only the sword and shield to learn, but armor, and the lance, and a horse to even scratch the tip of the iceberg. I may have a fighting style to teach you, but that's apparently only half of what you want to do. So, you'll need time." A conflicted look briefly passed over his face. "I know the training your mother had you do, and I know your sisters practically coasted through the first two years of Signal as a result of it. You're an Arc, I expect the same for you. So if you do this, it means no extra classes and wasted time, you learn the material and move on as fast as you can clear it. And all that extra time can go to your goal." He paused, taking a sip of his coffee, before peering intently at Jaune. "Homeschooling isn't for everyone, but if you're truly motivated, it can take you further and faster than Signal."

Seeing he still had his son's interest, Jack continued, "And here's the final bit. You'll still get to make your weapon. It's a traditional at Signal to make your weapon and test it during the second and third years, so you'll have several years to work with it before Beacon, and enough time to change if it looks like you'll blow your own hand off. I can pull in some favors, get you in contact with some weapon smiths I know. You'll have just as much one on one time with them then at Signal. That's the upsides." Knowing his son, and kids, they didn't tend to think things through well, so now it was time to make this a lesson, make him actually think about it. His life had pretty much been set for him the moment he decided to be a Hunter; the moment he was born to a family of Hunters. This would be the second major choice his son ever had to make, and he wanted to make sure he actually thought about it. "So, can you tell me the downsides?"

Instead of answering right away, Jaune sat and thought for a moment, mulling it over in his head and trying to see what downsides would be. The most obvious was, "Friends. I'm going to lose my friends. We'll be able to talk via scroll, but they'll be on Patch, and I'll be here. And I guess that also means no team training exercises or anything, since I'll be alone."

Jacques nodded, proud his son had got two downsides, even if they were more obvious ones. "Right, they'll be going through completely different things, caught up in everything that happens in Signal. You might lose some of them as you drift apart. But you will still get some teamwork practice, it's rather important for new hunters after all. Our teams will do our best to help with that, but it won't compare to working with people your own age. In some ways that will help you, as they'll be professionals and you'll be learning good habits. In others it will be bad; we old folk tend to be stuck in our ways, and will have some trouble following a little boy like you." He reached out to ruffle his son's hair, who glared at him definitely. He thought the short jokes would be over with by now. "Now, what else?"

That was a tougher question. Both offers had the same core things, training, weapons, and schoolwork, just different focuses. So maybe..."Specialization? I mean, this will basically be one of the old apprenticeships, like from before the War. I won't have as broad of a base then if I went to Signal."

Jack quirked an eyebrow at that. "Now, do you really think I would let you go with anything less than what you would get at Signal? Or that your mother would let me?"

"No, but I couldn't think of anything else." Jaune gave a shrug even as he wracked his brain for another answer. "Travel maybe? I haven't been outside Vale before."

Draining his coffee, Jack sat the mug aside. "Good enough guesses, but not quite. Travel you'll get eventually no matter what. And specialization isn't a bad thing, you'll find most trainees have by the end of Signal. But you were close. Diversity is what you'll be missing." Seeing Jaune following along, he continued, "Going to Signal, you'll see dozens of people and their fighting styles, how they evolve and change, and what weapons they make. You might see something that inspires you, something you like better than being a knight." Ignoring his son's incredulous expression at the idea of ever giving up his goal, pushed on. "I know, I know. You're stubborn like me, after almost a decade of wanting to be a knight, I don't see your dream changing anytime soon." Jack shrugged. "But, it could still happen, you're young. And Signal would be the chance to see everything that's out there. It's where I picked up using a hammer at."

They both sat in silence for a while, staring out into their yard and at the people walking by. "Do I have to choose now?" The offer sounded good, even if it meant staying home, and it would be his dad training him, but still, Jaune needed time to think it over.

"Hah, do you really think we'd make you do that?" Jack tried to look perfectly innocent, and failed utterly. The mustache really wasn't conducive to it.

"Yes," Jaune nodded. "Ever since the beach I've expected the worst from you."

"Oh come on," protested Jack. "You'd do the same if you had my semblance. But anyway, you have a month to decide, that's the deadline for Signal registration before the entrance exam. And later on, if you decide to switch to Signal, you'll be more than qualified, we'll make sure of it."

"Speaking of qualifications, when will you unlock my aura?" Jaune couldn't help the tinge of excitement that crept into his voice, no matter how nonchalant he tried to sound at the quick topic change. His family's semblances were amazing. From plasma to electricity to shadows and blob monsters, every single one of his sister's had an awesome power.

"If you go with Signal, they'll unlock it for you there, during the first day. It's something of a tradition. If you decide to work with me, I'll do it the next day, and we'll start the training. And I know you Jaune, no saying the apprenticeship now, just to get your aura unlocked, only to switch to Signal. You have to commit, one or the other. No take backs for a year." Jack stood up. "Now, go do some research, look into the options. I'll send you a list of who volunteered to help with your training, you can look up their public profiles, so you'll have someone to compare the Signal staff to."

Jaune nodded, heading to his room and his scroll. Later he'd have to visit the Vale main library, and see what they had to offer. Whatever his choice, he knew it would affect the rest of his life.

* * *

It was a blocky building, set low to the ground compared to others, all sharp edges and reinforced walls. There were no decorations in sight, not even a window to break up the endless grey of the concrete and rock. There was only a single door, set in the corner of the building. Or at least that's what it appeared at first glance. Jaune had been there enough to have memorized the message carved into the building, wrapping around it endlessly in every language known on Remnant. "Let not the light of knowledge be lost, but like the phoenix, rise again from the ashes, stronger than ever." It was a tradition to repeat it every time he set foot in the building.

The building was the Vale public library, and Jaune knew it served its purpose perfectly. The kingdom of Vale had learned from its predecessors, learned from the Great War. Too much knowledge had been lost to the Grimm as civilizations toppled, only for their successors to find bits and pieces as they rummaged through the remains. Books were burned for heat in the winter, stones taken for building supplies, until whatever secrets a building might once have had were lost. And that wasn't even counting the deliberate destruction by the Grimm, for they hated all of mankind and its creations. He'd gotten lectures on it often enough from the staff; he'd almost think they were trying to recruit him.

As Jaune passed through the doors, designed to turn into exit only doors if the Vale was ever breached, so that despairing humans could only leave, not reenter and draw Grimm, he could see the separate tunnel down to the Vault. Duplicate copies, both electronic and paper, of any book published in Vale, and any others they could get their hands on, were kept down there, with only the head librarians having access. If the Vale ever fell, they were determined their legacy would live on.

But Jaune wasn't interested in that, no, his interest lay at the new arrivals desk. "Hi Ms. Mauve. I got the message, it's finally ready?"

Mauve's, one of the head librarians, normally stern face broke into a grin at seeing Jaune. He one was of her youngest and most dedicated patrons in an age when most of the youth had switched to Scrolls. "Of course, I wouldn't call you here just to tease you about it." It was always nice to see a young mind interested in knowledge, even if it was a rather obscure topic. "One brand new copy of Dr. Jones' archeological findings at Fort Castle, not available to the general public for two months. I hear he found a brand new sublevel with several partially intact books and a room of weapons, and that's just what he leaked in the press conference. So I expect it's a particularly good read."

Jaune was practically vibrating with eagerness to get his hands on the book. Fort Castle had once been known merely as 'The Castle' before the Faunus rebellion, when the old but formidable castle had been taken over by the military. Before that the fortress had been a recognized landmark, and a bastion against the Grimm, its towers and curtain walls giving protection to the vast fields around it, dating back centuries. Abandoned and reoccupied countless times, it was one of the best known archeological digs into Remnant's past. But more importantly, it was rumored to have once been called Camelot, home to one of the precursor kingdoms. Ruled by the legendary King Artúr before a schism in succession drew uncountable numbers of Grimm to the area, eventually bringing the kingdom down and scattering is people. Most importantly, it was home to the order that would eventually become the Knights of the Vale.

Mauve paused, the book just out of Jaune's reach. "You know when this is due back, since it's a new copy of the book?"

"One week, no exceptions," recited Jaune, eyes still locked on the book. Hopefully he could renew it a few times if no one else was interested, at least until it would be ready for download from the publishing site. There was no way he'd be able to afford the hard copy.

"Wrong," replied Ms. Mauve, a small smile on her face.

Jaune jumped, tearing his eyes from the thick book. "Wait, what?"

"This is your copy." Jaune was doing a good impression of a fish at that moment, and the librarian couldn't help but let out a little giggle before pushing the book over to him. "I've seen you grow up in here Jaune, always going on about knights this and heroes that. And I know you've been waiting for this book since Dr. Jones announced it. I might have 'accidently' ordered a duplicate copy for the Vault, and since space is such a premium there...well... consider it a Signal Acceptance gift. Seems like just yesterday you were dragging your sisters in here to help you pick out books."

She gently pushed to book towards him, and he took it, hugging it to his chest like a newborn. "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou."

Mauve had to laugh again at his enthusiasm, it was always nice to see youngsters with that drive for learning. "Just promise me you'll come by and visit on your breaks." As she finished speaking, she saw doubt suddenly appear on his face, even as he set the book back down on the counter. Concerned, she asked, "What's wrong Jaune?"

"I can't take the book." He looked absolutely miserable as he said it, eyes glued to the glossy blue cover as he pushed it back towards her. Then his eyes rose to meet hers. "I'm not going to Signal, so I can't take the book. I'm going to do an apprenticeship with my Dad. I decided it yesterday, so I won't be going to Signal.

It was in his eyes, he was dead serious. She had called it a Signal Acceptance gift, and no matter how much he wanted that book, no matter how long he had waited for it, he wasn't going to take it, because that would be dishonest. More importantly, it wouldn't be chivalrous. "You know, I had wondered when you were planning to return it, with the flight leaving tomorrow. So, in this case I expect you to visit even more often, and to tell me all about it when you finish it. Signal or not, I expect great things from you Jaune, and I know you'll make a fine knight. Now, go on, you have a book to read."

And what a book it was, it had everything in it he thought it would. Descriptions of the artifacts and how they were found, translations of the books, theories on the history behind them, all of it narrated in Dr. Jone's entertaining style.

"Oh man...this is great. And what's this?" Flipping through the table of contents again, one phrase caught his eye, "The Trials of Knighthood."

* * *

Jaune was most pointedly not looking out the window. He was not looking at the landscape speeding by far, far below. Or the massive metal flight panels moving up and down. Or the clouds going by. Instead, he was looking at the inside of his eyelids. Because they were most certainly not moving.

And he didn't really need to see Glynda Goodwitch to hear her speech after all. His ears were working perfectly fine. He could just sit there, in the make believe dark, concentrating on not moving.

"Guess the view it isn't for everyone." That voice sounded cute...but not cute enough to risk opening his eyes. Somehow he didn't think throwing up on them would make the best impression. He'd try showing some of that confidence his Dad said girls loved once he was safely back on the ground.

The moment the Dustplane docked at Beacon, he could tell. For one, his stomach stopped trying to visit his mouth. "I can't believe I actually used to look forward to going on a Dustplane. What was I thinking back then?"

Other students had started to crowd the exit, so he patiently sat there a minute longer for them to clear. After all, a non-moving Dustplane was just as nice as solid ground.

"Ka-Boom!"

The explosion was loud and clear, even inside the airship, and it had him sprinting for the exit, hands reaching for his weapons. He slowed though, as he realized no one else was panicking, in fact, they were laughing.

One girl in red was alone on the rapidly emptying landing program, sitting next to a set of cracked and slightly smoking cobblestones. Putting two and two together, he slid his sword back away and walked over. Reaching down, he offered his hand. "Hey, I'm Jaune. You okay?"

"Ruby." Taking his hand, she pulled herself to her feet, barely clearing his shoulder once standing. "Aren't you the guy who was sleeping on the ship?"

"Hey, I wasn't sleeping. I was meditating." He only wished he could sleep on a Dustplane. Having an entire tortuous journey over in an instant would be bliss.

"That's what Yang always says when I make her watch a weapon special on TV.'I was meditating'" Ruby's voice rose higher for those last words, matched with air quotes. "Then she starts snoring."

"Well, I was meditating on my eyelids." Always tell the truth. He had to always tell the truth.

"Hah, I knew-"

"Because I get motion sick," Jaune continued on, talking over Ruby. "It was either close my eyes, or redecorate the cabin."

"No way, a Hunter who gets motion sick?" Ruby looked skeptical at the thought, as hunters by their nature were required to travel. "You're still teasing me."

Jaune shook his head. "Way, way motion sick. And my parents agreed with you, it isn't right to have a hunter that wants to yawn-in-multicolor every time he even sees a plane. So they cured me."

"Yawn in multi...Oh, hah, I get it." Ruby let out a little giggle, making Jaune smile. "You just said they cured you though!"

"Sure did, tied me to a chair and spun me around for hours." Jaune's hands circled around to illustrate. At least the fact it had worked made the trauma somewhat worth it.

Ruby stopped abruptly, almost making Jaune run into her shoulder. "They tied you to a chair and spun you around?! Now I know you're just messing with me." She turned to leave, Yang had warned her about boys that lied.

"Wait, not tied, strapped. Honest!" Jaune's hands were now flailing around as he tried to explain. "My Dad's rather good with machines, he made something that spun me around like a sling until I learned to control the nausea, or just got used to it. Not a fun time let me tell you, but eventually mind over matter won, and I can fly now."

"Then why were you about to puke?" He still hadn't answered the question, but at least she'd have a fun story to tell Yang later.

Jaune glanced around, making sure they were somewhat alone on the path, even as his hand came up to rub the back of his neck. Telling the truth was hard, but he had to stick to his rules. "I was nervous. I mean, actually coming to Beacon, not to mention all the people?" He was picking up speed, voice coming out faster and faster. "I'm not exactly the best with people our age, not much experience. Dad said confidence is key, but it's hard to be confident when surrounded by all this." He swept his hand around, indicating Beacon's vast campus and the tower that overlooked it. "There's even supposed to be a statue of my great-great-grandfather around here someplace. It's a lot to live up to, and half the time I…" His voice slowed down, shoulders slumping, before he gave a little shrug and a half smile. "I still feel like a little kid playing pretend."

'I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees.' Ruby's own words to her sister earlier echoed through her head. "Kinda like someone coming to Beacon two years early might feel."

"Yeah, like...wait what?" Jaune did a double take at hearing that, and opened his mouth to askher about it. Two year early acceptance was unheard of. But then he thought better of it, smiled, and just said "Yeah, like that."

The pair walked in silence for a minute along the path before Ruby started twitching. "Eh...So...I got this thing?"

Something red flashed in the corner of his eye, accompanied by the sound of metal shifting, and Jaune jumped back, hand falling to his sword. But it was only Ruby holding a giant red scythe that was taller than she was. "Is that a scythe? I mean, I just want to make sure I'm not sicker than I thought."

"It's also a customizable, high impact sniper rifle." She swung the weapon around with ease, hand landing to rest on what he was pretty sure was a magazine of bullets the size of his finger. He blinked, trying to come to terms with that, and the fact she had been carrying around the thing under her cloak this entire time. "It's also a gun."

He guessed she must have misinterpreted his shock. "I might not be that up to date on modern weapons, but that is just plain cool." Now he knew what his dad meant when he talked about diversity all those years ago, never in his wildest dream would a sniper scythe have crossed his mind as a weapon of choice. He was having trouble imagining how she'd manage to wield that effectively. But given the fact she was apparently in Beacon two years early, he knew she had to be deadly with it.

"So, what do you have?" she asked, her words speeding together as she looked up at him, curiosity burning in her silver eyes.

"Ah…well…I've got this sword and shield on me right now." He pulled out Crocea Mors, and expanded the shield. "The rest of my stuff is with the combat gear luggage."

"Oooooh," she murmured as she eyed the blade, then reached out to run her finger over the stylized, crescent in crescent heraldry of the Arc family emblazoned on the shield. "So, what do they do?"

"Besides takin' a lickin and keep on tickin?" Jaune took a step back before bringing Crocea Mors around in an elegant, elaborate, and much practiced in front of his bedroom mirror spin, to sheath it in the just collapsed shield. "Not much else. They're heirlooms from my great-great-grandfather, the man who inspired me to become a hunter. Haven't met anything yet that can damage the shield, and the blade holds an edge like nothing else. As my dad used to say, 'A more elegant weapon for a more civilized age.'"

Ruby let out a giggle at the more pompous tone he'd adopted at the end. "Well, I guess that's all you can ask of a weapon. I'm a bit of a dork when it comes to them, I guess I might have gone a little bit overboard when I designed Crescent Rose."

A whistle pierced the air. "It's one thing to know Signal students build their own weapons, it's another to see it in action like that. It's one impressive stabby, shooty, slicy and dicey piece of engineering." His hands mimicked his words as he talked, and it was all Ruby could do not to laugh. The funny thing was, he didn't even seem to realize he was doing it. "I kind of struggle with that myself."

"Is that why you carry around your grandfather's sword? Oh, not that I mean-" Ruby started to backpedal, just realizing how that might have sounded, before Jaune cut her off with a laugh.

"Nah, like I said, he's my idol. And it's what I trained with the most. But I'll admit, if I tried to make anything like your Crescent Rose I'd be more likely to singe my own eyebrows off. Everything I've made I'd had a lot of help with. But I can make decent practice swords."

"Not many people have a proper appreciation for the classics," added Ruby. "Less there is, less to break. But that's okay, I love doing maintenance on Crescent Rose, she's my baby."

The two fell into another comfortable silence as they walked, before Ruby broke it again. "So, why'd you help me back there? At the landing pad I mean."

Now it was Jaune's turn to stop in surprise. "Why wouldn't I? My dad used to say 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.' Plus I'm a sucker for a cute damsel in distress." He gave her a big wink.

Ruby gave him a small shove in reply. "Hah, I wasn't in distress...Well, not too much. Anyway, where are we going?"

Jaune looked around panicked, realizing the other students had disappeared as they wandered the grounds. They were supposed to be somewhere? Did he miss it on the plane? "I don't know, I was following I didn't hear most of what they said on the plane, I just figured I'd find the largest group of people and tail them."

Ruby's face twisted into panic and she grabbed onto Jaune's arm, pulling him along swiftly while yelling over her shoulder, "Why didn't you say so earlier!? I was following you! I don't want to be the last one to get there, everyone will see and notice me and realize I don't belong here and..." Ruby kept up her rambling while dragging Jaune along who was desperately trying to spot the entrance hall before his arm was yanked off by the girl. or they were late, and he honestly thought he would prefer loosing the arm to being late. The idea of stepping into where ever they were supposed to be, and have everyone turn to look at them was the stuff of nightmares.

After a few minutes of frantically running around, during which Jaune got the feeling Ruby could have left him in the dust quite literally, they managed to find their way to the auditorium where all the new students were gathering. And thankfully, they were still early. "Hey Ruby, over here!" Jaune could just make out a head of blonde hair, close to the same shade of his own, over the top of the crowd. For a second he thought one of his sisters had made it, and then her words caught up to him.

"Oh hey, I got to go. I'll see ya after the ceremony." Before Jaune could say anything Ruby was swallowed by the crowd.

He called after her anyway, "Nice meeting you." Looking around at the swirling mass of teenagers, he decided to stay back against the wall. "I think that was enough socializing for now...but maybe there's something to that confidence stuff Dad was always going on about after all. I mean, I met a nice, quirky girl, didn't I? And made a friend I think. Score one for Jaune, score nothing for awkwardness."

Suddenly the microphone rang out with static, and Jaune realized the Headmaster was about to make a speech. Man, they really had snuck in at the final countdown, hadn't they? The crowd fell silent as he began to talk, listening intently to the man who would be their leader for the next four years. As soon as it ended though, whispers broke out, and Jaune felt they were well deserved. Really, insulting them like that? Implying the work they had done, the sweat, blood, and tears they had lost during training wasn't worth it? He could see why Olivia transferred to Atlas if she heard a speech like that in light of what they'd gone through. He was almost surprised the rest of his sisters hadn't followed suite. Then again, it was tough to do so without parental support, and by the time it was Olivia's turn some of their sisters had graduated and could help. And the rest of the speech almost seemed to contradict the beginning. He wouldn't be surprised if there was something stronger then coffee in that mug.

Now, where did they put their gear? Checking over his armor always calmed him down, and after that speech he needed it. "Wasted effort? Hmph." Plush he wanted to make sure there were no more surprises in his bag. He'd managed to catch the onesie his dad had replaced his pajamas with, but he wouldn't have put it past him to have done more. He wasn't sure there was enough confidence in the world to walk around in that thing, and any other pranks would be as equally as embarrassing.

* * *

 **Scholar's Notes on Remnant:**

Libraries are an interesting thing. They hold the most precious thing, knowledge, and yet tend to be the first things destroyed. Maybe Grimm specifically target them. Or maybe we do too good a job of destroying them ourselves. No matter how many ruins we dig into, no matter how deep we dig, scraps are all we ever find. It doesn't help wither when there's scum like Belloq running around destroying entire sites in his search for old Dust mine maps. We've managed to piece together bits and pieces of the previous civilizations, but so much has been lost. And I shudder to think what was destroyed even recently with the Color Rebellions. Good riddance to the old Kings, but at least they were obsessive record keepers. If only they'd made more backups; if only we'd been more careful.

Still, this new lead looks promising, I'll have to contact Doctor Oobleck and see what he thinks. Could be worth making an expedition to visit if we can find backers.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

So, some more before Beacon and young Jaune parts. There's some key differences and dialogue changes in here from the original show, props if you notice them, as I guarantee they play a role later.

Hope everyone seems in character. And yeah, never really liked Ozpin's speech, always seemed a bit insulting to me for people who are basically volunteering to give their lives to defend others.

I'll be trying to post a minimum of one chapter a week, of varying lengths. Next chapter will have some action as the initiation starts, this was all more background stuff. And I am aware I skipped a lot of stuff regarding what happened to him between age 7 and Beacon. That was deliberate and will be expanded through dialogue and hint later on in the story.

Edit: And thanks to curious viewer for pointing out I had forgotten to go back and add in the page spaces that always eats from my documents.


	3. Chapter 3

When the sun rose, so did Jaune. Years of training had drilled the habit into him, and now, even if he couldn't see it through the ballroom walls, he knew it was time to wake up. His body was telling him to move, and with the added excitement of it being his first day at Beacon, the energy was almost unbearable. He felt like he could run for miles, or take on a horde of Beowolves barehanded. Nodding to an orange haired girl that was also up and about, he set about doing some brief exercises to try and get the nerves out before heading off to find breakfast.

Staring down at the heaping plate of eggs, bacon, and fruit, only one thought came to mind. "I can't believe I actually miss my Dad's protein shakes. Every time I tried to make them they tasted like broccoli." He paused to consider that, absently spearing a piece of fruit and popping it in his mouth. "I suppose he could have lied about the recipe though..." It was something he'd do; he hated to give up his recipes.

Still, he had learned, food was food, and a good hunter ate and slept where and whenever they could, even if he might get spoiled with all the food available. At least the cafeteria was mostly empty, after the crowd from the ballroom last night, he wasn't feeling up to dealing with lots of people first thing in morning. Frankly, he was glad he'd gotten any sleep at all, the soft murmur of so many people breathing and shifting had sounded like a marching band after his mostly empty house.

He finished up just as the majority of his fellow students started to filter in, drawn by the smells of food and coffee. Giving Ruby a nod as she dragged a sleepy looking blonde girl he could only assume was her sister over to the hot beverages, he fought his way through the flow and out into the thankfully mostly empty hallway. Letting out a sigh of relief, he made his way to the locker rooms where he'd stowed his gear. Opening his locker, Jaune saw his masterpiece, still gleaming from the polish he'd given it the night before.

It had been an ongoing project from nearly the moment he accepted his father's offer, and it never would have been possible without Ms. Mauve. She put him in contact with dozens of people, helping him organize a network of contacts, that when combined with his father's name, opened doors. Everyone from hobbyists to historians, museum curators to blacksmiths, even a robot designer from Atlas had got in towards the end. The end result was the armor currently sitting before him, a perfect blending of the competing Vacuo and Vale styles of armor, using techniques that hadn't been in practice since the rise of the Dust powered firearms, combined with modern material sciences and dust infused forging practices. It was unique, old and new, traditional and modern, Vacuo and Vale.

And it wasn't even finished yet, despite being a stunning work of art, all gleaming steel and gold tracery. Certain parts had to be held off on until he hit his final height, or at least stopped growing fast enough that he'd outgrow it by the time he finished making it. Others had been planned out once the base technologies had been proven effective, and would be added in stages. It was constantly evolving as he fiddled with it, adding bits and pieces, tweaking plate angles and coverage, strap placement and seals.

Reverently running his hands over the chest piece, he whispered a brief thanks to Ms. Mauve, silently vowing to write her after the initiation again to let her know how it had gone. Maybe give her a call the next weekend as well, or send a picture or two.

By now he could practically put the thing on blindfolded, but he still ran the process through his head before beginning; that mistakes cost lives had been a lesson long ago drilled into him. The armoring process started with a two piece padded under suit, designed to keep him from either overheating or freezing. Then he worked his way up from the feet, adding and securing each piece of armor, testing his movement as he did to make sure it was properly positioned.

"What I wouldn't give for a squire." His dad had made sure he could do it by himself, but another set of hands made it infinitely easier. "Almost...got...it!" Stretching out his fingers, Jaune just managed to grab the strap and pulled it tight with a sigh of relief. "Finally, the tough parts done."

Taking a second to rest, Jaune leaned against the locker next to his, and looked around. It had started to fill up now, more students trickling in from breakfast, or skipping the meal entirely, to prepare for the initiation. He could see Ruby hugging Crescent Rose, her nameless sister, the orange haired girl from earlier, now hanging around a boy in green...and the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. "Whoa…"

She was the epitome of grace as she walked in, brimming with a confidence Jaune had never known before in a girl his age, not that he'd known many. And her beauty; with her styled silver hair and white dress, she looked like a princess from one of his stories. The fact she had to be good with the rapier hanging by her side to be in Beacon was just frosting on the cake.

"I...I am going to talk to her." Saying the words loud actually helped muster his flagging courage. Talking to her would be like an ammeter mountain climber deciding to start on the Anzu Mountain; it just wasn't done by anyone sane. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Tally hoe and all that...it's not helping." Still, he found his feet walking him over towards her; her beauty seemed to draw him in. It was the tall redhead next to her that noticed him first, if the way her shoulders tensed was any indication.

"Well, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together?" Even her voice was perfect, like it was meant for singing.

Sadly, she wasn't talking to him, but to the redhead, who was looking at him with a resigned air as she answered. "Well that sounds grand." Her look reminded him of when his old classmates from before Signal would bother his dad for stories about hunting. He'd always tell them something suitably amusing and awesome, but before there was that look, and it took him getting asked about his own training to finally recognize it for what it was.

"Great!" the white haired beauty cheered, ignoring him standing there. He could still walk away, maybe meet her another time.

But she was in a good mood, so maybe he'd be lucky. And he'd already made one friend. How hard could it be? "You know what else is great? Me. Jaune Arc, pleasure to meet you." He couldn't believe he had actually said that, apparently four years with his Dad had managed to corrupt him. Too late to take it back, he had to follow through or look even worse.

She peered over at him, ice blue eyes piercing his own. "Oh, tall blond and scraggly from the speech. What do _you_ want?" Well, at least she recognized him from somewhere, even if he hadn't seen her before, and she wasn't thrilled to see him. Recognition was good, right?

"Nice to meet you Jaune," added the redhead, now looking a bit more interested in the conversation.

He turned to her, taking her welcome as a chance to gather his thoughts. "Nice to meet you as well." Now, he had to follow through. "So, Snow Angel, you remember me; I'm glad, I could never forget someone as lovely as you." Oh god, he did it again. He was going to kill his Dad next time he saw him, and Keppel. This level of corruption couldn't have just been his dad's work. What would his sisters say...focus...focus. "I've been hearing rumors about teams, I was thinking you and me would make a good one." And that wouldn't have been it.

"Actually," interrupted the redhead as she took a step sideways to keep both of them in her view. "I was just telling Weiss, I think the teams are comprised of four students each."

He didn't know her name...had she given it, had he missed it? He couldn't ask again, that would be rude. Think...think… "'Well hot stuff, play your cards right and maybe you can join up with the winning team." Being rude might have been better, the only thing filling his mind today was his dad's cheesy pickup lines, the ones Olivia said never to use when she heard their Dad telling him them. They just kept slipping out.

"Hold it." Weiss stepped next to the redhead, and away from him. "Do you know who this is?"

"I-" Jaune paused, looking her over. The armor was well made, nicely articulated at the knees and elbow. And the leather looked tough and durable. A spear and shield was rather unique, but nothing rang a bell...unless she was someone he knew before she went to Signal. But he was pretty sure he'd remember a girl that tall with hair that red. Still, she'd asked, so he had to admit his earlier blunder of not asking, or listening. "No, so-"

Weiss cut him off. "This is Pyrrha." Announcement finished, she waited with her arms over her chest, staring at him expectantly.

The now named girl waved, but seemed content to stand there, looking at him with vivid green eyes. "Hello again."

With Weiss standing there staring at him, he had to act. He also had an apology to make. Reaching out, he took Pyrrha's hand and raised it to his mouth, kissing the back. "A pleasure to meet you. Please excuse my rudeness earlier, I have no excuse except that I was raised by a man with the manners of a pack of Beowolves for the last four years, and I'm not used to being around beautiful ladies such as yourselves."

Both girls flushed red. Now this is what he wanted to be like earlier, charming and suave. He'd won them over! Before he could capitalize on it, Weiss pounced. "Do you have any idea who she is?! She graduated top of her class at Sanctum!" Apparently he hadn't won them over completely if Weiss's continued rant was anything to go by. Still, the pink tinge on her cheeks only added to her beauty.

"That's Mistral's preparatory combat school right? Quite a trip over here." He'd heard of it from his sisters, two of them were posted over there, and his grandma lived there. "Do you like to travel Pyrrha?"

Weiss didn't give her a chance to answer. "She's won the Mistral Regional Tournament four years in a row. A new record."

That he had heard of, his sisters said it was one of the funnest fights they'd ever had, and he told them that.

Now he was suspecting Weiss's flush wasn't because she was charmed by him as her arms waved widely in the air. "She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's marshmallow flakes box!"

Jaune could only shrug at that. "Sorry, I haven't had those since I was seven. Too unhealthy; so my Dad normally made me a protein shake blend. We had eggs on special occasions though," he added as an afterthought. And his Dad might be a goof, but man could his Semblance make some awesome scrambled eggs.

Pyrrha nodded in agreement. "Yes, they are not the most balanced breakfast, but it was still fun to do the photo shoot. And little kids are usually entertaining when they see me."

Weiss just glared at him, ignoring Pyrrha's comment. "So, after hearing that do you think you are really in a position to ask _her_ to be on your team?"

"Like my Dad says, nothing ventured nothing gained." And maybe he should have set his sights a little lower on who to talk to. Like Ruby again, or her sister.

Apparently that wasn't the answer Weiss was looking for. Throwing up her arms with a small scream of exasperation, she grabbed Pyrrha by the arm and started to pull her away. "Come on Pyrrha, let's go."

It was kind of funny to see the petite girl dragging the larger one along, but Pyrrha let her, giving a single wave before disappearing out the door. "It was nice meeting you!"

"Likewise," he replied, despite knowing there was no one to hear him. The locker room suddenly felt extremely empty, despite the students still preparing. With a sigh he started back towards his own locker to grab the last of his gear.

"Just perfect…" To top off his morning, his helmet was now wedged in the top section of the locker. "Come on, it fit in there fine last night!" With a final pull, accompanied by the sound of metal scraping on metal, the helmet popped free, sending Jaune stumbling backward to crash on the floor.

"Having some trouble there lady killer?"

Looking up from inspecting his helmet for any damage Jaune saw the same blonde who had been with Ruby earlier standing over him. "No, the helmets still good."

She laughed, offering a hand up. "I meant with the Weissickle earlier."

Jaune winced and took the invitation, somewhat surprised at the ease she managed to pull him up. Properly strapped the armor didn't feel like much to him, but he knew it weighed a fair bit, and he wasn't exactly light either. "My Dad said confidence was key, and my sisters agreed, but I don't think they had his cheesy lines in mind when they did."

"Yeah, I think Snow Angel and Hot Stuff might have been overdoing it some," remarked the girl before she turned to look over her shoulder. "Ready yet Ruby?"

"Ready Yang." Now he had a name to go with her. "Let's head to the cliff."

Ruby sped by them both, made it to the door, and then ran back in a blink of an eye and scattered rose petals. "You coming Jaune?"

"Yeah, one second." Sliding the helmet on, he reached back into the locker and grabbed his gauntlets. They'd been one of the armor pieces he'd worked on the most with the others to update the ancient design with more modern things, like grip pads. The end result was fully, environmentally sealed protection a bit past his wrist, with the flexibility to still use his fingers dexterously. It was still easier to armor up without them on though, to feel the straps and buckles with his own fingers.

And last but not least was his favorite weapon. The great sword he pulled out was almost as tall as he was, and thicker than a blade of that size would normally be. It clicked into place on his back, connecting to the specially designed dock.

"Hey, you said you didn't make weapons!" accused Ruby, already eyeing the blade. "That's a muzzle in the circle!" She was talking about the circle midway down the great sword blade, clearly different than the rest of the blade.

"No, I just said I was more likely to blow myself up if I tried, and I did. I lost my eyelashes when I screwed up the firing chamber and the first time I tried to collapse the scabbard I almost amputated my fingers. And that was with a Master Weapon smith's help." Reaching into the locker a final time, he pulled out a metal cylinder and attached it to the hip opposite where his ammo pouch was hanging. No idea if he'd need it, but better safe than sorry. Taking Crocea Mors and the dagger might be overkill though.

Apparently Yang agreed. "You think you have enough weapons there?" asked Yang, referencing both the sword on him and the other two she could see still in the locker. "Or maybe you want to borrow one of mine? I think I have a pocket knife somewhere." She exaggeratedly began to pat down her jacket.

Ruby just spoke over her though, used to her teasing attitude. "Ignore her, she has no appreciation for fine weaponry. So, what's it called, and what's it do then?" Ruby asked as she peered at it again, trying to trace the design in her mind. "You don't get explosions from the classics."

"This is Durandal, and it's basically an extension of Crocea Mors's design that you saw yesterday. Like this it's a great sword, but it can also separate into an arming sword, and the scabbard becomes a shield."

Ruby peered at it with renewed interest, noting the almost wedge like edge along the blade and the mechashift mechanisms in the center. "I know that's not just it. Which one has the gun in it?"

"The shield, a nasty surprise for anything I block with it. "Jaune gave a small smile as the memory of the first time he had used it on a Grimm flashed through his mind. "Best defense is a good offense and all that."

"Sweet!" Ruby turned to look at Yang in surprise, normally she could care less about other people's weapons. Yang just gave her a wide grin. "What? Shotguns rock, though I might be a bit biased. Now, you ready Jaune? Cause I have to say, you take longer than a girl to get ready."

Jaune just gave her a thumbs up and slammed his locker closed.

* * *

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." Jaune had to say, this time the Headmaster's speech was much better; he was actually recognizing their effort. Maybe last night's was a fluke?

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams.' Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today." Goodwitch barely looked up from her scroll as she spoke.

Ozpin spoke again, were they playing good cop bad cop or something? "These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

No, they were playing bad cop and bad cop. Or maybe Ozpin just liked his dramatic moments, because he kept talking over the worried whispers after taking a sip from his mug. If this wasn't evidence he was spiking it with something stronger than creamer, nothing was. "After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition from Grimm along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die. You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. Are there any questions?"

No one spoke up, but then again Jaune wasn't surprised at that. Couldn't get much simpler then see someone, head north, and grab a relic. "Take your positions."

Ruby, who was on the platform next to him, leaned over. "Will that armor mess up your landing?" Beside them the students were being launched off one by one, getting closer to them.

"Just wait and see, I've got it handled." Yang was next in line to be launched, whipping on a pair of aviators just before she was flung off over the forest. Then it was Ruby's turn, with a single wave she was gone, her cloak billowing behind her.

The platform tensed below him, and then he was flying through the air.

* * *

"Whatever powers that catapult isn't any normal spring...Then again its Beacon, nothing' probably normal." The air was whipping around him, whistling as it slid through the cracks in his armor. "Man, plastic rocks. I can't imagine doing this without lenses in the visor."

The display in his helmet was showing green across the board, not that he was expecting anything else. While it had been partially designed off the Atlesian helmets and had the potential to monitor a dozen systems, currently only one was actually hooked up.

The first students were falling away now, some deliberately dropping down together. "Birdy, no!" The faint cry was accompanied by a puff of feathers, and what he could only assume was the crack of Ruby's sniper rifle as she disappeared into the trees below. Yang was up ahead, still going strong as she blasted away with what looked to be the shotgun gauntlet's she'd mentioned earlier to gain lift.

Now it was his turn, the forest rising up to meet him. Green replaced his view of the sky as leaves flew by, small branches scraping against his armor. "I wish I had time to get the altimeter working. Lady Luck, don't fail me now." With that prayer, Jaune triggered his jetpack.

And nearly ran into a tree as he shot forward. "Hover, not thrust, hover, not thrust!" Screaming, he jerked himself to the side, dodging around the tree looming in his vision. "Too faarrrrrr!" He'd overcompensated, and was spinning toward the ground. "This is gonna hu-"

With an echoing crash and an explosion of leaves, gravity won its fight and Jaune finally hit the forest floor. "Ow...actually, that didn't hurt as much as I thought it would." And it should have hurt a lot if his training flights were any sign. Not even aura could block out everything.

A rumbling growl met his ears, and Jaune looked down into the glowing red eyes of the Beowolf that had served as his landing cushion. "You so don't count as my partner."

With a snarl its jaws came up in a vicious bite aimed at his throat, but Jaune wasn't there any longer. Rolling to the side he jumped to his feet, drawing his sword as he did. "You want some? Come and get some!"

It lunged, and he side stepped, great sword arcing around to take its head off. It bounced once, twice, and then rolled to a stop in front of a clawed foot. Jaune looked up, and up, into the angry spiked visage of a Beowolf Alpha. "Oh look...you had friends."

Grasping his great sword in both hands, he slowly pulled the smaller arming blade from within it, leaving the sheath in his off hand. Even as he did the Alpha's lips pulled back as it let out a deep, rumbling growl at his movements. His eyes were locked with the beast's in a direct challenge as its pack assembled behind it. Then the one hidden in the bush to his left revealed itself. "Clever girl." It pounced.

* * *

Beneath the ground a massive creature stirred from its hibernation. It sensed the impact tremors on the ground, and other more exotic senses could taste the fear heavy in the air. All its instincts spurred it to move; now was the time to hunt. With a shifting of rock and the sound of bone on bone, it pulled its many legs beneath it and began to move.

* * *

Scholar's Note: The Hoard at Fort Castle:

If you'll note the picture I attached Doctor, you can see the intricate articulation the armor had. I know many Hunters now have adopted speed as the tactic of the day, and I don't argue it's especially effective with the mecha-shift weaponry and Dust bullets, but this is a true masterpiece. I date it to the time right before the proliferation of Dust firearms, when the majority still used purely melee weapons, approximately 800 years ago. Dust dating in the lab will tell us more. And speaking of, the Dust that went into its creation must have been a fortune back then. Clearly a noble wore this, you can see the amazingly detailed gilding done in Dust. It almost seems to emulate the old Dust weaving arts, and the way it enhances the defensive applications of aura with little to no loss of flexibility is truly amazing. A person wearing this back then would have seemed a nearly invincible except to another aura user. Now, I know you well enough to know you'll argue it's much more cost effective to use the Dust that went into this to make ammunition, but I think we might have something here. I'll be forwarding a copy of my findings to Ironwood.

Addendum:

Surprisingly, throwing students off the Beacon cliffs really is a tradition. I was stunned when I realized it as well. Then again Ozpin's been there long enough now that any crazy practice he started his first year as Headmaster can be called tradition. And I suppose he needed some way to justify the expense of those launch pads of his as well.

It does make sense, in a twisted way. With the invention of the Bullhead, as opposed to the old, lumbering models of Dustplanes, the ability of Hunters to act as quick response teams increased dramatically. No longer were they confined to horses or cars to get them through rough terrain, or their own feet. However, Bullheads still remain vulnerable to Grimm, both land bound and those of the air, and so most times where an immediate response is needed, there's no time to land and carefully disembark. And floating down on a parachute just makes you an easy target for a Nevermore.

So when some of the crazies in our group started talking about adding jet packs to the armor designs we found, I wasn't surprised. Suppose it would be simple enough for one of the egg heads to adapt the hover panels and dust engines to make one. Sure beats jumping out of a plane on an inflatable life raft.

* * *

Creatures of Grimm: Beowolf, the Scourge of the Forest

Beowolves are some of the most common Grimm, roaming forests all across the world. They are particularly numerous around Vale, due to the two major forests surrounding it.

While not as strong as an Ursa individually, Beowolves are pack hunters. If you see one, there's always at least two more you don't see. They grow at an accelerated rate compared to most Grimm, with a larger ratio of oversize specimens to average size than most species. This is the result of their need for an Alpha, a larger than normal size Beowolf, to lead the pack. If the Alpha is killed, a new Beowolf will quickly mature to take its place, regardless of age. If an Alpha's pack is slaughtered, they will slip away and find a new pack as soon as possible. No fights have been observed to occur when this happens. The newly arrived Alpha will step seamlessly into the pack order depending on size. As such, hunters must be extremely thorough in eliminating packs to ensure the Alpha is always killed, or it will spread any knowledge it gained in the attack to its new pack.

The largest Beowolf ever on record was called Fenrir, responsible for starting the end of the Ice Lord Kingdom through the destruction of the countryside with its large pack, all of which were said to be Alphas. Eventually it was trapped and bound in place by a Hunter named Tyr, who killed it at the cost of his hand. Fragmented, its pack spread out, and continued to remain a threat to the countryside for generations, despite yearly purges.

* * *

Author's Note: And so initiation begins. Expect action in the upcoming chapters.

Hope I did a good job with the character interactions and dialogue. Would love to hear what you think.

Thanks for the reviews.

And have a happy Friday. Chapter added 12/11/15.

Edit: I am happy to reply to logged in reviewers if its not a question that will lead to spoilers.


	4. Chapter 4

Twisting to the side Jaune brought his scabbard around, expanding it just in time to catch the Beowolf flat on it before triggering the shotgun. He twisted back to center himself as the Beowolf was blasted back into another Grimm. The Alpha's claws sliced through the air as it lunged for him, using the sacrifice of its pack mate as cover. Its strike was curved slightly, the better to slide below the jawbone and rip out his entire throat in one swift movement.

It was smart, but not smart enough; the ambush was ruined now. "Not today!" Centered as he was, Jaune turned slightly, catching the claws on his pauldron where the shape of the armor did the rest and directed the blow off to the side. Tucking down his chin to give his throat more cover, he brought his blade around to hamstring the Alpha, but it deflected off one of the bone spurs. That was the problem with the Grimm, not even the same species always had consistent weak points, and he hadn't had a chance to get a decent look at the spike placement when he was watching its claws.

Still, the blow had thrown the Alpha off balance, and it allowed itself to fall forward onto all fours to recover, spinning around to claw at his legs as one of its remaining pack mates went high. Rolling forward beneath the lunging beast and knowing he'd just missed the Alpha's own attempt at a hamstring, Jaune came to his feet and struck down, cleanly killing the partially pinned Beowolf from earlier. Now the pack was down to just two.

Both were more cautious now, and Jaune could tell the elder Grimm was considering retreating, being careful to always keep its younger member between him and it. But, it wouldn't get the chance; he wouldn't let it.

Impatient, the younger Grimm charged again, arms spread wide to try and crush him to death. This time Jaune didn't do any fancy maneuvers, instead waiting for it to commit to its leap and then side stepping. Now it was his turn, and he ran forward, shield smashing into the Alpha and bearing it to the ground. Pinned, he fired a shot into it, but the older Grimm was tougher than its brethren, and the blast wasn't enough to kill it. Jaws snapped in front of his face as the beast tried to buck him off, but the shield's size prevented one arm from curving around to grab him, while Jaune's sword arm held the other back. Another three blasts echoed through the forest and its struggles went limp.

There was still one left, and the sight of its prey's back was enough to overcome anything it might have learned from the first two times it tried to grab him. With a grunt Jaune rolled, and caught the angry wolf monster on his shield as it pinned him to the ground. The positions were reversed now, he couldn't get his arms around the shield, and apparently the monster had learned something, for its body was very carefully not covering the gun holes in his shield.

Hot breath blasted his face as the jaws lowered toward him, lips pulling back to reveal rows of yellow and white teeth. "Sorry, no kisses on first dates."

Wiggling his arm up, he got the pommel of his sword pointed at the Beowolf's head, only possible because it's close range, and then it went limp as an eight inch steel spike drove through its skull.

With the sound of a watermelon being cut, the hidden spike retracted back into the sword handle, and Jaune easily pushed aside the now dead weight as he climbed to his feet. "Let's keep that our secret, okay?"

The bushes rattled on the left and Jaune spun, bringing his weapons back up into a defensive stance. That had been five right? He was sure he hadn't miscounted.

Then Weiss stepped out of the bushes. Their eyes met, and he blinked, not that you could tell with his helmet. Her beautiful blue eyes widened as she looked at his handiwork, the bodies of the five Grimm already starting to smoke and dissolve, before they focused on him with a laser like intensity. "You! You're my partner."

The command was short, imperious, and sounded like angels singing to his ears. Jaune had never been more grateful he'd gone with a full face helm as a mighty blush spread over his face. This couldn't be happening, it had to be a dream. The most beautiful, graceful girl was going to be his partner! "I-"

"Hey, but we're partners!" A voice cut over his even as a red blur shot through the same bushes Weiss had stepped through, skidding to a stop just before it would have run into one of the Beowolves. "Jaune!"

There were rose petals floating in the air. It took his brain a second to reboot from the strange sight, and then he realized what had caused them. "Hey Ruby, I-"

He was cut off again, Weiss stepping forward to poke Ruby in the chest. "No, he's my partner. I just said so."

"But-" Ruby's lips were quivering, and he was sure he could see tears in the corners of her eyes. Man, it was liking looking at his sister begging for a dog again. Did she really want to be his partner that much? He froze as a thought entered his head. He, Jaune Arc, homeschooled social failure, had two girls fighting over him. Two very cute girls. He'd thought his Dad was joking when he said it would be a few years before that happened to him.

Then an arrow was driven through his heart. "There was no announcement; I refuse to acknowledge you as my partner." The white picket fence in his dreams just went up in smoke. Of course Weiss would want to be with the prodigy who'd skipped out of Signal.

But Weiss wasn't looking at him, she was looking at Ruby! And Ruby's head was twisting back and forth between them so fast you'd think she'd give herself whiplash. "But Ozpin said whoever you made eye contact-" And then suddenly things clicked into place for Jaune. Both of them coming out of the same bushes, how Ruby was looking, and Weiss's original declaration. It made a lot more sense than two pretty girls fighting over him. The universe was back to normal.

"And I made eye contact with...with…"Weiss faltered as she turned and snuck a quick glance at him. "Jasper here." The last bit came out sounding more like a question then a statement. It hurt a bit to realize she didn't remember his name, but maybe that was for the best. He hadn't made the best introduction this morning; curse his dad and his pickup tips.

And Jaune could see it. Even if she didn't get his name right, he could see the future where he accepted Weiss's offer and was the beautiful girl's partner. It would start simple enough, working on homework together. And then would come the late night study sessions with just the two of them, impressing her with his knowledge of history and daring deeds, escorting her to the Vytal Festival, and then maybe being more than just hunting partners.

There didn't seem to be any teachers watching them, despite what Ozpin had said, so it would be his word deciding it. And everyone knew an Arc didn't go back on their word.

He wouldn't lie to himself, he wanted it; he wanted it so bad. He hadn't crushed on a girl so hard since Bianca introduced him to the beautiful Buttercup. All it would take would be one little nod. It wouldn't even be a lie, not technically. He'd be violating none of the oath's he wanted to swear, but hadn't yet. Why not take advantage of his freedom? And Weiss was sure to be grateful.

But then his imagination was replaced by the sight of Ruby's face as she tried to hold back tears, and the conversation he'd had with the girl from the day before floated through his head. The first friend his age he'd had in years. "To eschew unfairness, meanness, and deceit," he murmured, the sound barely loud enough to hear outside his helmet.

"What?" asked Weiss, hands shifting to her hips?

Those words had been a comfort to him, a mantra that had driven him forward in the toughest time. When it seemed he had nothing else, when training was about to break him, he had his dream. "I said, I'm sorry Weiss, but I need to go find my partner." That hadn't been what he'd said, but he wasn't about to explain to them his code, not now. Maybe to Ruby if she asked later.

Weiss's eyes narrowed at him even as Ruby's sniffles stopped. "Did you just reject me? No one rejects me."

Even as socially awkward as he knew he was, he was sure he could still take it back, and she'd most likely accept it. And maybe eventually she'd even forgive him for not agreeing right away...it was possible...probably…. But he'd chosen his path, and he would walk it. Straightening up, he collapsed his shield and sheathed his sword. His next words might have been the hardest he'd ever said, or at least felt that way. "Good luck looking for the ruins. If you see anyone else without a partner, send them my way, would you?"

Not sticking around to hear a response, and half afraid if he did he might give into temptation, he pushed through several bushes and trees blindly, just wanting to get away, only to nearly run into someone. Thankfully they stepped back before he could. "Pyrrha?"

The girl in question relaxed her sword from its ready position. "Is there still room on Team Jaune?"

She remembered his name! It wasn't much, but he'd take what he could get at this point to turn the day around. "For you? Always." Jaune smiled inside his helm, suave and charming; he'd nailed it. "So, to the ruins?"

"Yes, let us be off partner." She closed her eyes for a minute, brows furrowed in concentration, before turning to point off to their right. "I believe north is that way."

Jaune shrugged. "Works for me; I got rather mixed up during my landing strategy, and I never got around to adding a compass to my helmet, so at this point I have no clue where we're heading." The tall trees blocked off the sun rather effectively, and while he could climb one and look, he'd rather just trust his partner.

Pyrrha giggled. "Yes, I think everybody heard that. Equipment troubles?" The pair continued to walk through the forest, there being enough small trails that they didn't need to hack a path.

"Something like that. I didn't get much time to practice with the jetpack. My dad had just started to look for suitable things to throw me off when it came time to come to Beacon." And with his Dad he couldn't tell if he was joking, especially when Keppel started talking about making a snow bank to cushion his fall.

"What? That sounds horrible!" Pyrrha pushed past a branch, and it swung back, smacking into his armor. He ignored it.

All he could do was shrug, his dad was his dad. "He wouldn't have let me get hurt, not seriously. And he couldn't just borrow a Dustplane for it. Besides, it was better than his first plan."

Pyrrha was almost afraid to ask, but she felt compelled to. "What was his first plan?"

"To hit me up into the air with his hammer...or possibly use one of his bombs. But I'm pretty sure his hammer since he hates wasting Dust." He saw her horrified face in the corner of his eye. "Relax, I'm just joking. He wouldn't do something like that to me." In the privacy of his mind, he tacked on an 'I think.' After all, some of his Dad's methods had been a bit strange. Nothing like his Mom's, just strange. But they all worked.

The pair broke through some dense brush and into a clearing, the rockier soil having kept the area open. "Do you hear that?" asked Pyrrha, pausing in the center.

"Hear what? The helmet cuts down on my senses some." Eventually, far, far down his list of modifications to do for the armor was adding some audio microphones for enhanced pickup. So much to add, so little time. He looked around, hand raising up to grasp the sword handle over his shoulder.

"A rumbling?" Pyrrha cocked her head to the side, trying to focus. Then the ground moved, and they only had a split second warning.

As the soil caved in beneath them, both trainee hunters leapt to the side, landing among the thick tree roots where the ground was still solid. A dusty rock sprouted from the center of the clearing exactly where they'd been standing, even as dirt continued to pour down around it like an hourglass. Slowly the rock slipped beneath the dirt and out of sight as the sinkhole stopped growing.

"What was that, earthquake? No, it couldn't have been, the trees weren't shaking. It looked more like an attack." Jaune kept an uneasy eye on the hole as he unhooked his great sword.

"An attack? I've never seen one like it in the arena. But then it didn't have the depth needed for movement like that..." The fact that Pyrrha had seen a lot of different attacks went unsaid.

"Slate, a member of my dad's team, would do a move like that. Sand to destabilize, and then spikes from below to finish with. A nasty combo. But why would another hunter attack us? There are some Grimm that burrow but the size of that…" Cautiously the pair began to edge around the clearing towards the north side, keeping to the tree line. Common sense would have them run, but they were hunters, and leaving a potentially dangerous phenomena behind them didn't sit well.

As they reached the north side, the bottom of the sinkhole exploded upward, dirt, dust, and sand flying through the air in a cloud. Tiny bits of rock bounced off their armor, and Pyrrha's hair turned a light shade of pink as the dust settled down to cover its vibrant red. Through the quickly dissipating cloud they could see movement.

At first it looked like a pile of small mountain's worth of granite had decided it wanted a change of scenery, but then eight legs the size of tree trunks became visible even as a tail of similar size uncurled. Like one of the 3-D hidden shape posters that used to be all the rage, the rock pile suddenly took on a much more sinister shape. Cracked slabs became armor plating, worn grooves shifted into segmented protection, and it hit them both at the same moment. It was the largest Deathstalker they'd ever heard of, a Grimm with armor plates so old that they actually had moss growing on them in places. The rock spike from earlier had just been part of one of its claws, both of which snapped at the air as it began to climb out of the pit.

"Run." The whispered command barely made it to his ears as Pyrrha had already started edging back from the clearing, moving slowly to try and avoid catching the monster's attention.

Jaune didn't bother to say anything in reply, just took a careful step back. There was only the slightest clink of metal on metal, unavoidable with his armor even with aura muffling. But it was enough. With a speed belaying its size, the Grimm spun around to face them, its claw casually knocking aside two trees as it did. Eyes are windows to the soul, and those red reflective orbs showed nothing but malevolence as they focused on the hunters.

They bolted, echoing crashes resounding behind them as the Deathstalker ignored the trees in its way to surge after them.

* * *

"Are we still going north?" He had to shout to be heard over the sound of breaking branches behind him, and the scrape of bark on metal as he used his shield like a battering ram to clear a path through the thick underbrush. A blind Goliath could have followed the path they left, but going slow would just let the Deathstalker catch up.

"Yes." Pyrrha risked a glance over her shoulder, seeing the swaying trees and scattering birds that meant the Grimm was still following them. Her eyes widened as she turned back. "Beowolf!"

Jaune didn't even bother to stop, and ran into the Grimm at full speed. With a yelp it was thrown aside, helped along by a blast from his shotgun shield, and the two kept running. Alive or dead, they planned to be past it before it could be a problem.

Abruptly the trees disappeared, leaving them running in an empty field. "Jaune, to the left!" He spun at Pyrrha's cry, bringing his shield up, but nothing was there. "A stone path, we're close."

"You mean we could have been running on that this whole time? Figures." The shield collapsed back into a sheath and he let it clamp to his back, just keeping his sword free. "See the ruins?"

"Straight ahead Jaune." Pyrrha was already heading towards them at a brief jog.

"Huh, how'd I manage to miss that?" Columns and stone walls, partly covered in moss and ivy, rose in front of a gently sloping hill. The path led straight to it. "Figured they would have built at the top of the hill for defense." He started to jog after Pyrrha but then froze. The crashing sound of the Deathstalker's pursuit, ever present since the clearing, had stopped. The forest was quiet. Well, almost quiet. "Think we managed to lose it? And is that screaming?"

Pyrrha turned back to regard the still forest. "Possibly. And yes, I do believe it is. But not from up ahead."

"No, but up is definitely the key word there, come on!" Circling in the sky was a Giant Nevermore, and falling beneath the vaguely crow shaped Grimm was a red shape. And he only knew one person with that color red clothing.

"Heads uuuuuuupppppp!" Ruby's voice got clearer as she fell and the two sprinted closer. Jaune saw Yang out of the corner of his eye, standing with what must have been her partner, but he didn't have time to look.

"Come on, work this time you dust forsaken piece of junk." Praying to any deity that might be listening, Jaune triggered his jetpack, shooting up at an intersection arc. "Ruby, aura!"

He was aiming to come in from the side, catching her coming straight down would be just a bad as her hitting the ground; his Dad had made sure to impress the basics of physics on him right before showing him how to screw with them using aura.

Their auras collided as he caught her, what should have been a potentially bone breaking catch changed to just a jarring one, before he triggered the jet pack again to straighten their fall. "Hah, I knew it would work. And she didn't believe me!"

"She who?" asked Jaune as they touched ground with a thump.

"Weiss," answered Ruby just before Yang swept up beside her.

"Ruby!" "Yang!" cheered the sisters as they went to pull each other into a hug.

And then the pink haired girl from earlier jumped between them with a cry of "Nora!"

"What?" At this point Jaune was just confused. Where'd the new girl pop up from, and how'd she manage to get between Yang and Ruby's hug like that?

Then the green clad boy from earlier came running up; the same one who'd been hanging with the orange haired girl that morning. "Nora, please stop leaving me behind, we talked about this."

"But Ren, I only said we should make sloth noises, not act like one. You need to move faster, or all the maple syrup will be gone by the time we get back." Well, at least he had a name for the hyperactive girl and her partner now, even if he was still confused.

Pyrrha came walking over to him, having watched the entire thing. "That girl rode in on an Ursa….I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like it before. But your catch was amazing too Jaune."

Jaune gave a shrug, a little embarrassed with the praise. "Someone had to help. Though I think she had a plan...at least I hope she did. Still, hard to beat riding on a Grimm. I'm not ashamed to have lost to that entrance."

"Hey, I did too have a plan," protested Ruby as she interjected herself into the conversation. "And I rode a Grimm as well. And mine was bigger. So there."

"How could you leave me?" The shout could barely be heard, and the group looked up to see the Nevermore circling back around, a white figure hanging from one of its claws.

"Does that Nevermore have a hangnail?"

No one heard Nora's question, or possibly no one bothered to answer it, as Ruby shouted to the sky, "I said jump!"

"Hate to break it to you sis, but 'Jump' isn't exactly a plan." Yang just shrugged at the glare Ruby sent her way.

"She's gonna fall," pointed out Blake, Yang's partner, with about as much concern as someone pointing out the weather.

"She'll be fine." Ruby sounded more like she was trying to convince herself more than the rest of them.

"She's falling." Jaune had to wonder how everyone was remaining so calm. Sure, they'd been launched into a forest off a cliff, but that Nevermore was much, much higher.

Weiss was truly falling now, and no one else seemed to be doing anything about it, and all Jaune could see was opportunity. The chance to save her and maybe get in her good books, or at least wipe away his refusal from earlier.

Taking a few steps off to the side to get the proper room, he jumped, the jetpack boosting him up. He could see her eyes widen as he shot towards her, and he couldn't keep a victorious grin off his face. This was his moment, time to rescue a damsel in distress! "Just drop-"

Of course, that was when he ran into the newly formed glyph and was sent rocking back into the ground. A few seconds later Weiss landed daintily next to the small crater his landing had made. He managed to lift his head up to look at her. "Still mad from earlier, huh? I don't suppose we're even now."

"It's a start. Never speak to me again and it might be enough." With that she walked over to Ruby, nose in the air, and leaving him in the dirt.

Jaune couldn't help but watch her go. "Even mad she's beautiful."

Then a shadow blocked his vision of the beauty as she berated Ruby, side ponytail bobbing in her anger. "Jaune, are you alright?" Pyrrha extended a hand down to him, and he let her haul him to his feet. Surprisingly, for a second the armor didn't feel as heavy.

He gave a small shrug. "Nothing damaged but my pride. Now, don't we have a relic to recover?"

Of course, that was when the Nevermore chose to circle back around, letting out an ear piercing screech. As if summoned, and maybe they were as larger Grimm were known to command their lesser brethren, a pack of Beowolves broke from the forest and charged toward them. One seemed to be favoring its side, and Jaune realized it was the one he'd run through earlier.

"Don't worry, I got this!"

"Ruby, wait!" But the girl didn't hear her sister, she was already off like a shot, dashing towards the oncoming pack.

Sliding under the arm of the first one, she used her momentum and a shot from Crescent Rose to slice it in half. Before its dismembered pieces could fall over she was already moving again.

"Wow." Ruby proceeded to slice, dice, cleave, and cube her way through the remainder of the Beowolf pack. "I knew she had to be good to get in early...but wow."

Ruby finally came to a stop as the last Beowolf fell, its shredded body breaking down into smoke. Pulling her scythe from its back with a small grunt of effort, she looked over her shoulder back at the group. "See, no sweat? I had that handl-"

"Look out!" Variations of the warning came from all of them at once, and Ruby quickly turned back.

"Oh." While she'd used the wide open grassy plain and her speed semblance to slaughter the Beowolves, now she was utterly exposed, and the Nevermore was going into a diving run.

With a mighty flap of its wings feather each as big as a person and strong enough to pierce steel were shot forward. "Ruby!" Yang rushed forward as the downpour of feathers began to overtake her running sister, but she had to dive to the side to avoid the barrage herself.

"Yang!" Ruby was pinned. The creature's size actually working against it when it had attacked her. The attack would have devastated an army, but there were enough gaps in the barrage that individuals could slip through. When a feather had hit the back of her cloak, literally nailing her in place, the attack had continued on for the Nevermore couldn't risk stopping and falling to the ground, letting her escape unhurt. But the cloak was a gift from her mother, and she refused to abandon it, struggling to free the tough fabric as the Nevermore circled around for another pass at its now stationary prey. All she needed was another minute...

Of course, that's when the Deathstalker exploded from the woods and headed straight for her, even as the Nevermore twisted a wing, turning in midair to face the other students. It hovered in place, each flap threatening a barrage of razor feathers if they dared to try and cross the open ground to help Ruby.

"No!" Jaune wasn't sure who shouted, it might have even been him, and he didn't care. He wasn't about to stand there and watch his friend be impaled on the golden stinger of the Deathstalker, Nevermore or no Nevermore.

He boosted forward with the jump pack, a move he'd only theorized with his Dad about and never tried, practically skimming above the ground, as the Deathstalker brought its tail down. He was close, close enough to see Ruby turn away and close her eyes as the stinger came towards her, but too far to actually do anything about it. Not even throwing his sword would work, it was too far and the tail to big. Then a blur of white shot by him.

* * *

Ruby cringed back, knowing the stinger was coming, and it was too late to do anything, but not wanting to actually see what was about to kill her. Her hands still struggled with the clasp on her cloak, hoping to loosen it enough to free herself, but it was meant to stay on when her semblance activated, and her sudden stop had pulled it terribly tight. But she had to do something. What would Qrow say? Or her father...would he actually be able to pull through losing another person in his life? She didn't want to think about it, not at the end…

But the end wasn't coming. Hesitantly, she opened her eyes, and saw grey. "Huh?" Wasn't the afterlife supposed to be white? Oh wait, there was the white! Then her fuzzy vision sharpened, and she realized it wasn't the afterlife, it was Weiss, and the grey had been Jaune's shield.

"You are _so_ childish! And dim-witted, and hyperactive, and don't even get me started on your fighting style...and I suppose I can be a bit... _difficult_...but if we're ever going to do this, we're going to have to do this together. So, if you quit trying to show off, I'll be...nicer."

Weiss punctuated her speech by holding a hand out to Ruby, which Ruby gladly accepted, allowing herself to be pulled up. But she wanted to make one thing clear. "I'm not trying to show off, this is life or death. I just want you to know I can do this."

The two looked like they were going to get into another argument, something they didn't have time for with the way the Deathstalker was struggling. "Okay, reconciliation time's over. Come on, let's kill this thing!"

Weiss whirled on him, annoyed their moment had been interrupted. "No, you brute. We only need the relics. Let's get them and go." Weiss turned her back on the trapped Deathstalker, trusting her dust enhanced ice to hold it in place. It continued to struggle, trying to free its trapped half, or at least its tail to chip itself free.

"And this thing chased us halfway through the forest, then sat and waited to ambush us. The moment it breaks free of that ice, it'll be coming back for us. And I'd rather not be looking over my shoulder the rest of the trip." As if to punctuate his statement the ice encasing half the Deathstalker gave out an ominous crack. "There's no better time than now."

A javelin flew over them, between the two halves of the claw the Deathstalker tried to block with, and into one of its glowing red eyes, bursting it in a shower of red gore. It gave a cry of rage and pain, and redoubled its struggles to get free. Pyrrha ran up beside them, Akoúo̱ in hand. "I must confess, that felt surprisingly good." The spear seemed to pull itself free from the beast's eye, and return to her hand.

"Nice shot partner, now it's my turn." Collapsing his shield back into a sheath, he slid his sword into it and twisted slightly. With a clank the sheath visibly shrank and a sharp edge grew around it. Holding his great sword with both hands, Jaune took a running leap, vaulting over the one free claw to land on the Death Stalker's back. It bucked violently, but he kept his footing on the craggy bone plating and took aim at the joint of its free claw.

Behind him he could hear Ruby asking, "Was that some kind of auto return mechanism or..." but then his focus returned to the monster below him.

The sword was brought down in a two handed chop, all brute force and power and guaranteed to cut off the things limb, or at the very least leave it useless. Then the plating shifted under him, and instead of cutting cleanly through the limb's weakest point, his blade hit the armor surrounding the joint and stuck tight. "What the?"

Glancing around showed the Deathstalker was still stuck in the ice, so what caused his footing to slip? He looked down, and eight red beady eyes looked back at him. "Well, crap."

"Swearing!" shouted Ruby as she took a shot at the Deathstalker, forcing it to cover its face.

"Not now Ruby!"

Ignoring the byplay between the sisters, Jaune stayed where he was, ignoring the swipe at his knee as it bounced off the armor. The stinger tip heading for the gap at the joint was a little riskier to ignore, and so he stepped back, only to trip as he ran into something at knee height behind him. Balance upset, and seeing the Grimm in front of him advancing again, he jumped for his sword, but missed as the Grimm deliberately shifted its leg, smashing it into his stomach and sending him down beneath its legs. And the Deathstalker knew it, its legs rapping out a staccato beat as they tried to crush him. "Double crap. I squish bugs, they don't squish me!"

He had to frantically roll back and forth as the tree trunk limbs crashed down around him. There was a flash of grey in the corner of his eye. It was his sword, the monster's movements had made it shift, and while it was still wedged, now the handle was pointing downward. Timing his roll and dodging another attempt by the monster to have him see the world from a flatter perspective, he snagged his sword handle.

Its next attack on whoever was in front of it pulled him clear, trailing after the sword before it popped free and sent him flying through the air to land with a clang and clatter.

"So...that's not armor," observed Ren from where he was standing back and watching Ruby and Weiss's attempts at putting out another of the monster's eyes.

"No, it's not." Jaune slowly climbed to his feet, brushing off the dust.

"It's a bunch of mini-Deathstalkers." Said Deathstalkers were all starting to uncurl, revealing a vicious mess of stingers.

"Yes, it is." Jaune could guess the parts of the giant Grimm's back still encased in ice also had its own army of tiny terrors.

One of the mini-stalkers scuttled of the back and began to chip away at the ice encasing the giant's claw, before Weiss speared it. "Did you know that before you jumped on?"

Now the obvious questions were starting to annoy him. He really had to work on the whole socialization thing. "Nora, do you really think I would have jumped on its back if I'd know it was carrying around a bunch of angry mini-me's?"

"Well, I would have." Jaune had to do a double take when he heard her say that, and could only blink in surprise when she put her words into action and leapt forward. Pulling the weapon from her back she let it expand into a giant war hammer, and brought it smashing down on one of the mini-stalkers. The creature, already resembling an egg with its almost entirely white body and shape, exploded. There was no other word for it. In fact, Jaune could have sworn he actually saw its eyes bug out in that millisecond moment between when the hammer hit and when it burst into chunks of disintegrating meat.

"Whee!" Of course, that was what he thought before he truly saw it explode as Nora triggered some kind of blast in her war hammer, blowing her back up and away, and smashing the large Deathstalker flat to the ground. Mini-stalkers were blown off its back, scattering around on the ground like comets. With an ominous groan a giant crack appeared in the ice holding the large stalker as it started to climb back to its feet.

"We need to finish this now. Ruby, keep giving cover fire, don't let up on its eyes. Ren, Blake, Yang, Weiss, get the mini-stalkers, and keep an eye on the Nevermore." Jaune barked out the orders without thinking, used to dealing with his parents' teams, who would only argue if it was a stupid order. It wasn't until after he'd spoken that he realized fellow teenagers might not be so up to taking orders from a guy who'd just gotten kicked around by a giant bug. So it was a nice surprise when the others actually listened to him, breaking off to take care of their targets even as he heard the crack of Ruby's sniper rifle.

"And us?" asked Pyrrha.

Jaune tightened his grip on Durandal, taking strength from the familiar feel of its wrapped handle. "We take care of mamma. Nora, finish cracking its shell. That should give you the opening you need Pyrrha. I have unfinished business with its free claw."

The Deathstalker was hunkering down, claw held protectively in front of its face as Ruby's shots plinked off the armor. "Alley-oop!" Spring boarding off Pyrrha's shield Nora launched herself high into the air before spinning around and blasting forward, crazy grenade launching hammer leading the way. This time when she landed it wasn't the ice that cracked.

Circling around to the side to keep Ruby's line of fire clear, Pyrrha threw her javelin forward, the retro rockets activating briefly to drive it deep into the black fissure that stood out against the surrounding bone armor. Running after it she grabbed a leg and spun around like a gymnast, letting go on an upswing and landing perfectly on her javelin. It didn't bend in the slightest, and a massive plate of the armor pulled free like a cobblestone, revealing pulsing red flesh beneath.

At the same time Jaune slipped between its legs and brought his sword down in a two handed swing. There was no mini-stalker to upset his aim this time, and the blade swung true, cleaving through the unarmored joint and sending its one free claw crashing to the ground. It was impossible to distinguish individuals shots from Ruby's rifle she fired so fast, and all seven of its remaining eyes burst near simultaneously.

Blinded, missing a claw, and with half its back blown away, the Deathstalker finally broke free of the ice in one pain and rage fueled movement, making the hunters on its back leap free. Reorienting itself by the tremors in the ground it turned to charge at its tormentors, all thoughts of flight or strategy gone from its head, only the primal need to take one of the humans with it left.

"Yang can you finish it?" asked Jaune, eyeing the rampaging creature. If he blocked it's free claw, that should give her the rooms he needed to blast its back.

"Of course-"

"Hey now, no stealing my boom!" With a click on her hammer the three grenades Nora had planted on its back exploded, nearly blowing the beast in half. A final shudder wracked its frame, and the tail and remaining legs curled up. Then it joined its severed limbs in beginning to disintegrate into smoke, a process that at its size and age would take hours.

Jaune could only take a minute to appreciate the sight. This was the largest, oldest Grimm he'd ever faced, and they'd taken it down.

"Way to protect and sever there Lady Killer." Of course the moment had to be ruined by Yang's horrible pun.

Still, that reminded him. "Quick, let's take a picture with it."

"What?" demanded Weiss, seeming to teleport over to them in her outrage. "First you delay to fight it, and now you want a picture? Did you forget we're in the middle of a test?"

Jaune was too excited to care. "My parents have pictures of every Grimm in the book, literally, that they've killed. I want to start my own collection. And what better way than with the largest Deathstalker seen in these parts since Mountain Glen?"

"You know, he does have a point." Blake took a moment to eye the monstrosity she'd had a hand in taking down. It was a fine way to start her new life.

"Aargh!" Weiss threw up her hands in frustration with the entire juvenile lot of them, and was about to stomp away before Pyrrha grabbed her. "What?" She thought she managed to sound at least someone polite, Pyrrha was still famous and useful after all. The others just thought she sounded constipated.

"Since you do not wish to be in it, could you please take the picture?" Pyrrha asked.

Unable to refuse the taller girl's request and turn down the chance for a potential future favor, Weiss just nodded and pulled out her scroll.

Raising it, and seeing the other triumphant teens posing in front of the dead Grimm, she hesitated. "Move over." Planting herself in the middle she held the scroll out and snapped a shot, the signature golden stinger of the Deathstalker visible over their heads, and a row of ruined red eyes peeking out between them.

* * *

 **The Creatures of Grimm - Deathstalker**

These Grimm appear to be based off the common scorpion, and as such have a plethora of natural weapons including their armored backs, stingers, claws, and a tremor sense. These combined with their ability to burrow and lie dormant for years at a time make them an extreme hazard in places like Vacou, where the shifting sands and landscape work to their advantage. Areas and paths that were deemed safe the week before can suddenly become deadly as a lurking Deathstalker pulls itself free from hibernation to strike.

With the failed expansion attempt of Mountain Glenn, more Deathstalkers have appeared in the area surrounding Vale, and were one of the primary Grimm seen during the final days of the expansion attempt, alongside the ever present Creeps. Now they threaten mining interests in the mountains.

While like all Grimm they can grow to immense size with age, the poison of the smaller ones is actually more potent. The larger specimens tend to simply impale their targets, or rip them apart with claws. Average size is between one and two yards, around Vale, and four to five in Vacou. As always, no known upper limit.

* * *

 **The Creatures of Grimm - Nevermore**

Many people underestimate these Grimm, as their average size is only slightly larger than that of a buzzard. However, these bird Grimm have the highest recorded kill count of any other Grimm.

The razor sharp feathers they can send flying are deadly to the average civilian and their small size makes them hard to spot and stop, especially at night. Advances in automated targeting for the wall guns have helped decrease the amount that slip through into Vale proper, but unfortunately, death by Nevermore is still a common cause of civilian casualties.

They are also the most common Grimm to reach Giant sizes due to their ability to escape through the air. These Giant Nevermore attack different prey then their smaller brethren, as their larger feathers are unsuited for attacking individuals. Instead they harass sky and land craft, necessitating all travel between the cities be done in large convoys.

It is hoped that the new Schnee sponsored airship, the White Whale, will user in a new age of travel, as its large size and potent armament should make it able to resist even an assault by a flock of such creatures.

* * *

 **Scholar's Note:**

Grimm never stop growing, and they never get weaker. Instead, they begin to develop a kind of base intelligence and cunning, along with a command of their lesser brethren. Archaeological digs I've been on have unearthed records dating back to many, many predecessor Kingdoms. Consistent throughout these are tales of certain Grimm haunting specific areas for decades, preying on individuals and even entire families before fading back into hiding. Often, this results in the Grimm acquiring a name, and the fear generated from that name can make the area unlivable, as it draws in more Grimm, leading to more fear, which results in a vicious cycle.

As a result, Hunters are dispatched to deal with such Grimm as soon as possible. The records of the older civilizations denote the same practice, with stories of hunting parties taking out creatures such as Smaug, the Claw, and the Leviathan. However, there are just as many tales of the monsters never being caught. One such example is the Questing Beast, dating back as far as the Kingdom of Artur. Many famous knights hunted it, but none succeeded, even with a bounty significant enough to purchase a Barony on its head. Rumors of the beast still exist today. If that is true, it would be a most deadly and cunning foe.

* * *

 **Author's Note** : Have another chapter in celebration of the fact that I watched the last two episodes of RWBY yesterday and got caught up.

Hope this was a nice dose of action, since I know the story so far has been mostly building characters, and establishing the changes that occurred.

As always, I'll be happy to answer any non-spoiler questions for any signed reviews.

Posted 12/4/2015


	5. Chapter 5

"So, what's the plan for tweety bird up there?" Yang's question reminded them there was still the circling Nevermore, even if it seemed content to keep its distance now that its reinforcements had been killed. Jaune eyed it carefully, but it seemed content to slowly circle high above them, well out of the range of anyone but Ruby or Pyrrha to hit with anything but luck.

"Well, we don't have to fight it, we just need to get a relic." Ruby's comment got a respecting nod from Weiss.

"Good point Ruby, I kind of forgot about those." Weiss glared at him as he said that; he just couldn't win with her. "Who's grabbed one already?"

Yang, Blake, Ren, and Nora raised their hands, with Nora proudly showing off her rook. "I'm Queen of the Castle!"

Well, that answered the question of what piece he would be grabbing them; knights beat everything! Then a red blur shot by him, rose petals trailing in its wake. He blinked, and suddenly Ruby was already at the ruins, grabbing the knight piece.

He almost protested, it was his lucky charm after all. But it wasn't worth fighting over, so he grabbed the last rooks. Knights lived in castles after all, and he didn't think he rated a king just yet. Maybe if they had to do this again next year. And he didn't let his obsession totally rule his life, really he didn't. "Now what?"

"Circle around to the southwest, it'll bring us back near the cliffs Beacon sits on…." started Blake.

Yang picked up, "And give some cover from the Nevermore if it decides to attack us again. Nice partner, high five!" Blake ignored her as she rolled her eyes, leaving Yang's hand hanging. At least until Nora completed the high-five, gaining a nod of respect from Yang.

They set off, following the rolling hill the ruins were built by to the much steeper cliffs that would become Beacon's plateau. They even had the remains of a stone road to follow. Or at least that was the plan.

"So, giant gaping chasm. What's the plan now?"

Ren absently reached out and grabbed Nora, pulling her back from where she was peering down the sheer drop into the fog below. "Well, there are the stone walkways."

"They didn't have safety standards back then, I'm not trusting my life to hundred year old shoddy construction work. Look at that, half those paths don't even connect to the center!" Weiss did have a point. The stone road had led them to what looked like it might have been an open air market at some point. And behind it was the chasm. But crossing that chasm were several stone bridges and pillars marking where bridges had one been, all connecting to a giant fortified stone tower. They could easily see how the bridge nearest them led to the tower, and another one connected to a thin strip of green between the cliffs and the chasm, exactly where they wanted to go. Both were still intact, a sign that while old, humanity's work at the time had been anything but shoddy.

"This must one of the tributaries that feeds into the Vale rivers; you can hear it below." Pyrrha had temporarily put up her weapons and was looking around at the ruins with some interest.

"And you know what else you can hear? Old concrete crumbing. And that I'm pretty sure that was another one of those bridges collapsing." Weiss pointed away into the mist.

"No, that's just rapids," corrected Blake, as if that would make it better.

"Even better, after we plunge to our doom we'll get to be battered against rocks. What a wonderful itinerary." Weiss threw up her hands in exasperation, surely she couldn't be the only person to think the crumbling stone was a death trap?

Ren glanced at his wrist, pulling back the sleeve slightly to show his hidden weapons, and a watch. "This is the quickest way back, and they are grading us."

"Well what are we waiting for then? Let's be off." With that abrupt about face, the heiress was the first to set foot on the bridge. Everyone else started to follow, the bridge easily holding their weight and not swaying in the slightest. Every stone still seemed to be properly mortared in place, no ivy, weeds, or even moss gaining a foothold in the centuries old stonework.

Of course, that had been what their enemy had been waiting for. With a shriek that seemed to express its utter hatred for all of humanity, the Nevermore accelerated into an attack. Feathers started to impact the bridge behind them, not even shaking it, and herding them forward towards the central tower. Some stuck firm in the old rock and mortar, others hit stronger stone and slid instead of penetrating, grating across the bridge in a shower of sparks as their metallic nature scrapped the stone. But the ancient construct stood firm; their ancestors had built tough.

Of course a giant Nevermore running into the bridge supports as it pulled up from an attack dive had a slightly larger effect; and was slightly outside the tolerance the ancient humans had in mind. With a sound like a landslide, chunks of the bridge began to give way as their supports plunged into the river far, far below. It started a chain reaction as the entire bridge destabilized, larger and larger pieces breaking away and disappearing into the fog; and it was getting faster. "Run faster!"

The central tower, clearly once a large fortress or equally important building, was larger than it had appeared, the curve of its wall making it impossible to get a clear jump to the bridge they needed. And the smooth stones, cut so perfectly the heavy blocks fit together without mortar, offered no purchase for running or climbing across them. Perhaps they had been designed that way to make it harder for Grimm to scale the fortress, but whatever the reason, it left the students with only one option. "Into the tower!"

Following Ruby's shout Yang yanked open the ancient door, rusted hinges long solidified giving way before her strength. Of course, giving way meant they came out entirely from the stone around them, disintegrating into scraps of rust and iron, leaving her holding up the heavy door with no support. "In!"

Above Jaune could see the Nevermore had recovered from its dive, and was gaining the altitude needed for another attack as it circled around. Ducking in behind Pyrrha he grabbed the door from Yang, pulling it closed and bracing against it. A second later feathers sprouted through the door, and he had to let out a sigh of relief as one stopped inches from his groin. "Well, that was a close one."

No one replied. Trusting the Nevermore feathers perforating it to keep it in place, he released the door and turned around. "What's wrong?"

The rest of the students weren't looking at him, they were looking up, and he followed her gaze. "Oh."

The tower had once been beautiful, that much was clear, especially as at some point in time the tower's ceiling had partially collapsed, letting the sun shine down into its confines through the multiple floors above them. Where normally that would have given them plenty of light to see the intricate wall carving, mosaics, and faded paint on the walls, instead the tower was still dim and gloomy. The light from the ceiling and the dozens of arrow slits placed around the walls barely filtered through the layers and layers of web filling the tower. They covered everything from the decorate wall statues to the several other doors dotting the wall, and from within them seemed to be dozens of skulls. But Jaune knew better, none of those skulls had ever been inside a living creature.

Arachne. Skull shaped armor, the typical bone white of the Grimm, covered their abdomen, making the rest of their jet black body nearly invisible in the dim light; and as they started to stir it almost seemed like the skulls were alive and floating on their own. Two longer front legs, tipped with vicious bone white saw like spears, waved in the air as they took in the sight of fresh prey, acidic venom dripping from overlarge front fangs. Typical garden spiders had eight eyes, while most of these Grimm started at ten and worked their way up from there, often unevenly, which just adding to their unnatural appearance. And every single one of those eyes, red and glowing or decoy black sockets, were focused on the foolish hunters that had just wandered into their domain. With the scuttling of hundreds of legs on stone, the spiders moved forward.

"Can we make it to the door?" asked Ren as his twin weapons appeared in his hands.

Yang spared a glance towards the area the door would be located, the same section where the floor had collapsed, but saw only a thick mat of webbing. "Gonna have to find it first."

"I can make us a new one!" Magnhild was pulled off Nora's back, already coming around to aim.

"No!" everyone else shouted at once. "You might bring the rest of the tower down on us," continued Pyrrha.

A muffled screech reached them, audible through the thick stone. "And there's still the Nevermore out there," Jaune felt the need to remind them, still thinking about just how close that feather had come to his most important equipment.

"It's probably waiting to try and take out whatever bridge we end up on again. That's what I would do," continued Blake.

Ruby nodded, it was a good strategy, before she looked around at the group standing a bit deeper into the tower. A plan started percolating in her mind then, as she saw Blake's weapon and thought of her own partner. "Well, we'll just have to take care of it then. If we get the Nevermore, can you all keep the spiders off our backs?"

"We'll hold the enemy here, you take the Nevermore." Following her words, Pyrrha took first blood, her spear rapidly shifting into a gun. One of the closest Arachne's fell from its perch on the ceiling and crushed another of its brethren below as a heavy dust infused round smashed its head like a pumpkin.

"What about the door?" asked Nora as she started to lift Magnhild again?

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Yang's joke prompted another round of groans. "What? Too forced?"

But it worked well as a signal, and the others took off. Weiss catapulted herself and Ruby into the air as Yang launched herself forward using her gauntlets as a booster. Blake just ran up one of the thick cables of spider silk, seeming to disappear in a moment as one Arachne took a swipe at her. It collapsed a second later, head sliced clean off.

Following them Jaune rushed forward, they needed to get closer to the edge of the collapsed part to have a clear angle on the floors above. "Me and Nora will get the ones close to us!" Her pout at being denied her explosives disappeared, as with a laugh of glee she spun in a circle, Magnhild shifting her hands. The two Arachne leaping at her were swatted like flies as they were hit by the gigantic hammer. "You two give them cover."

Ren nodded, slicing a cable as he ran past and bringing three of the Grimm down into Jaune's range, even as he opened up with Stormflower. The lighter caliber bullets didn't do as much damage as Pyrrha's heavier rounds, but he was pin point with his accuracy. The stream of fire broke limbs, shredded webbing, and burst the occasional soft underbelly. Soon there was a steady stream of wounded spiders falling down around them which Jaune easily finished off as he kept an eye for any leapers.

Above them the girls were getting closer to the top of the tower, following the path cleared by Pyrrha's sniping. "I know the real reason you wanted to fight the Nevermore Ruby! You just didn't want to fight these nasty things!" Yang punctuated her teasing with a blast from Ember Celica that took out a Grimm Pyrrha didn't have the angle to hit.

"Not true! You're the one that doesn't like spiders, not me!" A burst of her semblance let Ruby emulate Blake and run briefly up the rocky wall, back flipping off to land on the edge of the floor above.

"That was just one time!" protested Yang, continuing in a grumble, "Stupid spider webs getting in my hair."

"Enough!" Weiss's shout cut off Yang's mutterings. "We're nearly at the top."

Ruby could see the dark shape hovering out of reach. "Well, birds are vulnerable to electricity, right?"

"Ruby, that's just in videogames, not real life." Blake answered her question since Weiss seemed about to explode and Yang was frantically trying to get a piece of webbing off her hand before it got in her hair. The upper level right below the ruined roof was clear, the spider Grimm having avoided possibly giving away their hiding spot by webbing it up.

Ruby looked affronted. "Well, duh I know that. What I mean is those feathers act as armor, but with electricity we won't be attacking the armor, we'll be going for the squishy bits underneath. And Weiss has yellow dust, right?" Weiss nodded when the others turned to look at her. "So, we damage it, then Weiss stuns it with the electric dust. Either that kills it, or it makes it crash into the canyon."

Blake blinked, then took a look through the remains of the ceiling at the circling Nevermore above. "That...that could work."

"Alright, so here's the plan…."

* * *

"Two o'clock!" Pyrrha turned at the yell, her shield batting aside the leaping Grimm. Jaune was there the second it hit the ground, finishing it off before it could recover. But more were coming, crawling up the walls from below and dropping down on silken threads from above.

"Nora's plan is looking better and better…" The girl in question didn't hear Ren's comment, she was too engrossed in seeing how many of the Grimm she could squash like the bugs they resembled. Even without explosions enhancing her swings she was still strong enough to crack armor and flatten heads.

Stepping around the pulped remains of one of her victims, Jaune distracted another two. Both leaped, colliding in midair to hit the ground in a mess of flailing limbs. Only bothering to avoid the saw bladed forelimbs while the rest slid off his armor, Jaune stepped into the pile and gutted them both. "Not until the others are clear. We can hold out until then."

"We just need to conserve some ammo." Saying that, Pyrrha let out a shot that smashed between the uneven eyes of a larger specimen. It fell two stories, legs curling up around it in death, before disappearing into the broken floors below. Jaune could hear it impacting other unseen Grimm as it fell, and the very distant thump as it hit the ground was joined by several others.

"Hey, blades don't need reloading," joked Jaune as he braced himself, sword impaling another leaping spider as he slid between it and Pyrrha.

"Hey bird-brain, I'm right here!" The shout was accompanied by the rapid firing of a shotgun. They all spared a glance up.

"Sounds like they have it under control. Cover me for a minute." While he was precise, Ren's Stormflower, being two submachine guns, still used more ammo then Pyrrha did for the same effect, and he was running low.

Ducking under one slicing bone saw tipped leg and absently slicing it off as he dashed past, he came to the edge of the collapsed floor. There was a single set of stones still poking out of the wall, more stepping stones then a path, but to Ren it might have been a well-lit sidewalk.

With sure steps he ran along the edge, trusting Pyrrha to shoot down any Grimm that would try and entangle him from below. Coming to the spot he guessed the exit was at, he began to hack away with his bladed weapons, clearing away the thick webbing to reveal the doorway out. Two quick slices later and the hinges were cut clean through, rusted iron no match for aura enforced, dust forged steel. Taking a second to secure the door down on the floor, making a slightly larger landing platform, he leapt off it, clearing the pit and landing back with the others.

Up above, things weren't going quite so well. "Make it get closer!"

"I'm trying!" snarled Yang as she released another volley of blasts. But the Nevermore seemed content to hang back and lob volleys of feathers at them. The remaining roof looked more like a strange black garden had taken root with all the feathers impaled on it then the previous open space it had been.

"Aim at the wing!" Blake put action to her words, joining her partner in shooting at the bird as it circled back around. This time their concentrated fire paid off, making the Nevermore veer slightly closer to the tower, and away from the bridge they needed. Perfect for the plan.

Running to the edge of the roof Weiss launched herself with a glyph, Myrtenaster already sparking with electrical energy. Her attack was perfect, the point hitting exactly where she aimed, right where the wing and neck met. Electricity discharged through the Nevermore's body and it convulsed, feathers rattling each other with a metallic clanking before it began to fall.

Weiss was right there falling beside it, and she began to summon another glyph. But it wasn't for her. Ruby dashed off the roof, Crescent Rose's recoil giving her the boost she needed to reach the glyph hanging in midair. Hitting it, she launched straight up and through another series of glyphs. Just like in the popular 'Eat my Dust' arcade racing game series, each glyph further boosted her speed, until she was going even faster then she normally did with her semblance.

The sight of her scythe hitting the falling Nevermore's neck as it fell was the last thing Weiss saw before the ground and sky replaced her view as Blake grabbed her, using Gambol Shroud to swing them both back onto the tower. Regaining her balance and orientation, she saw the Nevermore, its head now falling separate from its body, and Ruby riding on its back. A glyph later and Ruby was back on the tower with them. "Way to go!"

"I can't believe that plan of yours actually worked; you were crazy to come up with it," Weiss managed to get out between panting breaths as the adrenaline raced through her body. Falling, and trusting someone else to catch her had been an experience...but a good one.

Ruby just grinned. "See partner, I told you I could fight."

"And they're still fighting below, let's get out of here." Without waiting for them, Blake leapt back down the hole.

Pyrrha had shifted her gun back into a sword; the Arachne were only coming from below now, and the few that crawled up the wall opposite the hole leapt over to fight them. She turned, just in time to see what had appeared to be a lump of webbing on the ceiling shift. The Arachne slowly moved, pulling its way free from its disguise, and let go.

"Jaune!" He was standing right beneath it, and she wouldn't get there in time. He managed to lookup just before it crashed into him.

The Grimm covered him completely, utterly still. Then it twitched, as with a grunt of effort, Jaune managed to push the dead body off himself. "Thanks Blake."

The girl just nodded from where she'd landed on the floor, then walked over to the disintegrating corpse. The throwing knife made a slurping sound as she pulled it free from the monster's eye. Despite watching her do it, Jaune still wasn't sure where she managed to hide it.

"Everyone's here, lets book." One by one they jumped over the gap and through the door to freedom. Nora was the first one out, and stood there, bouncing on the balls of her feet. When Ren, the last one out, saw her, she didn't even need to ask.

"Go ahead Nora." With a squeal of delight, she collapsed Magnhild back into its grenade launcher form and let rip with a spread of grenades. They could just make out the bouncing sound as her expert shots ricocheted off the walls of the tower.

"Should we be running?" Jaune was already starting to back away from the doorway. He wasn't the fastest and if she managed to collapse the tower he knew he'd need to head start.

"No silly, I know how to make things go boom." With perfect timing that's when her grenades all detonated as one. Dust shot out of the doorway, and there was a deep rumbling sound followed by a horrendous series of crashes. But the tower barely rocked. "I just collapsed the floors to squash the nasty bugs."

"Think clearing that was worth bonus points?" asked Yang as they started back across the bridge to the Beacon cliffs.

* * *

 **Creatures of Grimm: Arachne**

Let many of the more Arthropod appearing Grimm, Arachne are ambush predators. The smallest they have been noted at is approximately one yard, from one end of the body to another. It is important to note that this does not include the legs, which significantly increase this size.

These spiders will colonize abandoned structures, caves, large tree groves, and any other area significant to giver cover and allow for ambushes. They are always seen in large numbers and use swarm tactics.

While the smaller versions of these monsters produce venom that is purely poisonous, and webs comparable to normal spider webs, the larger versions are different, enough so that to this day it is argued about whether they are a different kind of Grimm entirely.

This transformation seems to occur when the monsters reach the approximate size of a car, and could possibly be triggered by web size, in addition to age. Armor begins to thicken, as fang and front leg size increases. Venom production also changes, taking on a corrosive quality. The Grimm will use these to expand whatever area the web is in using such methods as tunneling, digging, stacking of debris, etc. The webbing produced becomes much thicker, and with jagged, barbed wire like protrusions on it, though it loses none of its stickiness. They also tend to be more cunning, and will throw this webbing in nets.

Eventually, a final transformation into a Neith occurs as the spider reaches a size larger than most houses. It is highly recommend to run if one is encountered, easily told by the blood red hourglass located on the abdomen. The poison of the bite is no longer a concern, as the victim is far more likely to have a hole melted through them then to die of the venom. No less than two full teams of hunters are recommended to combat these, with specialized Semblances if available. This is due to the harness of the terrain, and the sheer number of normal and large Arachne that always accompany them.

The City of Webs is the largest web currently known of, located in the mountains north of Mistral. It is rumored the remains of an ancient city is located beneath the webbing and within the tunnels of this area, however all attempts to penetrate deep enough to locate them have met with failure so far.

* * *

 **Scholar's Note: Ruins in the Emerald Forest**

Numerous kingdoms have risen and fallen within the Emerald Forest. Its supply of hilly terrain, easy access to the caves and heavier forests of the area southeast of Vale, and dust deposits meant civilizations have long flourished there. Or at least long enough to build up before being destroyed by the Grimm.

Due to their closeness to Vale, they are some of the most explored ruins, and have given us most of our insights into the immediate past of our world. However, there are always new discoveries being made there by traveling hunter teams.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** So, here's initiation. Funny fact, they actually killed less Grimm on screen then there were people on the teams. Think about it. Three Ursa, Two Nevermore, one snake, and one Deathstalker on a bridge.

So, I wanted to expand it a bit more. I'll also be trying to play up the different flavors of the characters. For example, Blake and her ninjaness. Hence, the throwing blades. And Ruby with her sniper rifle, so she'll be making a lot of really good shots, going for the eyes is going to be a favorite of hers. Not to mention Weiss and her awesome utility.

Also, to head off any confusion, right now Jaune's armor is basically plate armor from the 1400s, with a jetpack attached and a fancy helmet. He has plans for more, which will be coming up later in the story. But right now, there's not much modernness to it.

If you want to see the real life inspiration for what I imagine his armor resembles, take a look here: (Which would be easier if didn't try and eat the links) Remove the spaces and the -'s to get to it. Or you can go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art webpage and enter the names:

www -.- metmuseum -.- org / toah/works-of-art/27.177.1,2

This is French Calvary Armor (Armor for Heavy Cavalry)

www -.- metmuseum -.- org / toah /works-of-art/19.131.1,2

And this is English tournament armor. (Armor for Field and Tournament)

Both are later period pieces.

Credit for the Arachne goes to Ryuugi, who writes the best and longest RWBY story I know of, called The Games We Play. It's in my favorites if interested, though the more complete version is on Space Battles.

As always, thanks for the reviews, favorites, and followings, and conversations in PMs

Posted 12/18/2015


	6. Chapter 6

Jaune stared at the others. They stared back. No one said anything, and the fact they were in the middle of a crowded cafeteria for dinner just made it even more awkward. Clearly, it was up to him to start a conversation with his awesome leadership abilities. "So...I'm leader...that's...a thing." They were so doomed. Why had Ozpin picked the one person without any positive experience with people their own age to lead? It had to be the spiked coffee.

"Very astute observation." Breaking the four way staring contest, Ren instead turned to his tea, making Jaune wonder just what was so fascinating about a cup of stewed leaves. Hot chocolate was so much better.

Then there was silence again. "Man, they make us look adjusted." Yang's whisper wasn't exactly a whisper, and the fact her team was sitting right next to theirs meant they all heard it.

Giving into the urge, Jaune shot her a quick glare before turning back to his own team, which still remained deathly quiet. He had to do something, this called for emergency actions. "So, Nora, you like pancakes?" Considering it was dinner time and her plate was filled with them, he considered it a safe topic.

"OhILovePancakesThey'reSoAwesomeAndDeliciousRenSaidICouldn'tSayAnythingUntilSomeoneElseDidBesidesHim,SomethingAboutBadImpressionsSoI'mSoHappyYouFinallySaidSomethingToMe."

Jaune blinked as Nora paused to take a breath, inhaling a pancake as she did. "New record," remarked Ren, glancing over at the clock. For the life of him, Jaune didn't know if he was referring to how fast she said that, or how long she'd stayed quiet. But at least everyone was smiling now, even Team RWBY. It seemed they'd rather watch his team deal with being a team then handle their own. Or maybe they really were just cool with it, taking down a Giant Nevermore had to be good for bonding.

"Alright, cards on the table time." Ignoring Nora's whisper of 'What cards? Are we playing a game?' he continued on. "I'm leader now, and I don't have any experience with that. I never attended Signal, and never worked with people my own age before, though I do have some team experience."

"So what did you do?" asked Pyrrha, staring at him intently with her green eyes. Now, how to tell his super awesome all-star champion partner he was essentially homeschooled?

He decided on the direct approach. "Ah...well I was homeschooled, apprenticeship style, with my Dad." Weiss scoffed at him from RWBY's end of the table, then grunted as Ruby elbowed her in the ribs. He was torn between shooting Ruby a thumbs up for defending him, and siding with his crush as she gave her partner a glare, so instead he ignored the byplay. "He trained me, but the rest of his team helped as well." Pausing, he considered that really didn't cover the truth of it, and maybe a bit more detail would help. "They tried to make sure I got leadership experience, but they've been at it so long they really ended up just doing their own thing, or ordering me around. Not that it was a bad thing," he hurried to add, not wanting them to get the wrong idea, "I just didn't really get to lead. But I picked up some really cool tricks."

"Oh, like Ren did part time with his family?" The pancake in her mouth made it a bit hard to understand Nora, but Jaune had more than enough experiences with meals on the go to know what she said.

"I guess so?" He took the chance to snag a bite of his own food. It wasn't Dad's cooking, but it wasn't bad.

The conversation lulled again. Not as awkward as before, but still pretty awkward. He almost decided to make a cricket noise, but that probably wasn't the best way to break the silence, and would probably cement his reputation as the weird homeschooled kid. So, what else could he do? "Okay, how about this. We each tell a story, just to get to know each other better. As long or short as you want, and I'll go first." He didn't want to give them a chance to refuse after all, but he saw Pyrrha nod from next to him. Maybe peer pressure would work on Ren, since he was sure Nora would love to talk.

Taking a swig of his water, he started even as he silently prayed it wouldn't backfire on him. "So, Dad gave me the option of going to Signal, or training with him to be a Knight. After some thought, I decided to go with his training for a couple reasons. Mainly superpowers. I mean, getting my aura unlocked right then, or having to wait until the end of summer and Signal? Superpowers then really beat superpowers later."

He could see Nora and Ruby nodding along in agreement with his logic, even if Weiss looked less than impressed. "So, he told me to meet him for training the next morning, when he promised to wake my Aura. I could hardly sleep that night, imagining how awesome it would be to have my aura unlocked, and what cool powers it might give me. I mean, my sisters all have pretty amazing Semblances, and so do my parents, so I figured I'd be killing Grimm the moment I got it. So I woke up bright and early the next day and grabbed my training clothes. He's already waiting for me in the middle of the living room in full combat gear, with his warhammer sitting right next to him, when I come running down the stairs.

My dad reaches out, places his hand on my shoulder, and says his words 'Though the sands of time may slip through my grasp, it is our actions that live on after all has trickled away. I release you, so that long after my hourglass has emptied of its final grains, your own actions will ensure my acts ring on forevermore, a chain unbroken by time, unbothered by distance.' The glow of my aura surrounded me for the very first time, the power of my soul unleashed, and I felt like I could take on the world as I stared down at my glowing hands."

He pauses and looks around, catching their eyes one by one to impart the seriousness of the moment, even Team RWBY, and he could see them hanging onto his words. "Then I see him move, pulling his hand from my shoulder. He picks up his hammer, and I'm assuming we're about to do some training. Then the next thing I know he smashes me through the conveniently opened back door and into the pond...the pond we didn't have the night before."

His audience collectively blinks. "Wait, you're telling me your father dug and filled a pond overnight for the express purpose of hitting you into it?" Pyrrha sounded completely confused at the direction the story had taken.

"Yup, and when I asked him about it, he said," Here Jaune shifted his voice lower, trying to mimic his Dad, "Son, I got to fulfill two dreams with one hammer blow today. One, I got to hit someone out of the house, even if your mother wouldn't let me hit you through the door, and two, I got to skip you like a rock on the water."

"Perfectly good reasoning. I'm jealous, I still haven't managed to do those things yet." Now it was Nora's turn to be stared at. "What? Every hammer wielder has a list of things like that. I for one am happy he managed to fulfil his dreams. One day I might too have the pleasure of smashing someone through a set of doors! Though personally I'd rather hit someone high enough it'll take them over thirty seconds to hit ground first."

Weiss just sneered. "And you spent the next four years training with this man? No wonder you have no social graces."

Well, there went his plan of winning Weiss over with his amusing story. Maybe he should have told them about one of the field trips his dad took him on? The one with the three Ursa was pretty good.

"Oh, my turn, my turn!" Without waiting, Nora launched into her own story. "It was the first time I crossed an item of my hammer list. I'd just finished Magnhild less than a month ago, and been inducted into the super-secret order of hammer wielders. And I really, really wanted to knock off an item on my list. Knock off, get it? Ha." She paused a moment to inhale a pancake before continuing, ignoring her full mouth and the tiny bits of pancake flying out. "Anyway, I went out and found a small Anura, you know, the frog looking Grimm, and smashed it completely flat. But that made its tongue stick out, like one of those keychain toys, you know? And the tongue tagged my sister who wasn't expecting it and got paralyzed. Boy, she wasn't happy about that. But I did manage to pancake something. Mmmm, pancakes. I think I'm gonna go for seconds."

"Well, that's Nora," said Ren, breaking the silence that stretched for a minute after the girl had walked away, plate in hand. "We've been friends for years, and grew up in the same village together, one outside the Vale walls. Large enough to have its own walls and regular checkups from the Kingdom, small enough that we had autonomy."

"Shouldn't we wait for her to return before you continue?" asked Pyrrha, concerned about how the bonding would go with someone missing.

Ren gave a shake of his head. "No, this is a story she was there for and she'd be trying to add her own embellishments to it the whole time. Better to do it now." He paused to take a drink of his tea before continuing, "A new family moved in from Vale, and their daughter challenged me to a spar the very first day, insulting Nora when she did. So I agreed. We started to fight, and I clearly outclassed her, she only had a bit above basic training. She charges at me and-"

"And Ren flips her into a gigantic mud puddle. She was covered in the stuff, looked just like something from 'Revenge of the Mudmen.' And then she swore eternal rivalry with Ren before trying to tackle him into the mud, but missed again and went face first back into the puddle. They dueled right before we left for Beacon and Ren crushed her again!" Nora had returned, plopping down in her seat with another gigantic stack of pancakes soaked in syrup.

Everyone turned to Ren, but he was staring at Nora with something like shock on his face. "That was actually true, you didn't add anything…"

"Course not. It's cool enough as it is, you have an eternal rival!" Jaune found himself agreeing with her, it was hard to argue with that logic. Eternal rivals and duels were awesome.

"My tale too is one of rivalry," began Pyrrha, calling everyone's attention to her. "Before I fought in the Mistral regional tournament, I fought in several others, for my parents were insistent I carry on the family legacy, especially as the Roma family does not have a representative in my generation, and the Families needed to appear strong. Competing was still new to me at the time. I was excited, nervous, and worried. So much so I didn't do a last equipment check before the final match."

Her eyes went far away as she described the scene, the chanting crowds of the filled stadium, the knowledge her parents, and the parents and children of the other Great Families, were watching her. "It was a hard fought battle, Alexander was truly gifted with his bow, and at the time I only used a training spear and shield. Then disaster struck; I had fastened my greave on wrong in my nervousness, and it came off as I tried to close the distance. He noticed, and his arrow struck my leg. It was almost enough to finish the match, but not quiet, and I made it cover. But I was trapped, he'd have time for one more shot before I could close, and my leg was a perfect target. In fact, legs were one of his preferred targets. So, I pulled off my other greave and threw it at him. It distracted him enough I could get close and finish the match with a diagonal slash to his torso." She gave a shake of her head, as if remembering her foolishness. "My parents did not let me forget that match, and actually made me tape my greaves on in my next training with them."

Nora only focused on one part of the story. "But you said eternal rivals, did he become yours?"

Pyrrha nodded. "Indeed Nora. At every other tournament, he was there. Though he never managed to best me." The last bit was said with a small, proud smile.

"Impressive." And it was, to never have lost an official match was an amazing feat, and her reputation was well deserved. Maybe he'd look up some of the recordings of her matches later, get an idea of her style. "So, we've all shared a story, and unless Team RWBY wants to repay us for their eavesdropping?" All four turned away and began whistling innocently. Jaune had to admit he was a little jealous they were already so well coordinated, it hadn't even been a day yet since they'd met in the forest. "I guess we should find our room. I'm ready to hit the hay."

* * *

The rain beat down on him, thick sheets of it falling in a torrential downpour. His gauntlet probed the rock above his hand, searching for a handhold on the slick rock. Metal scrapped on stone as he wedged his fingers into a gap between the stones, and pulled himself up. Risking a glance down, all he could see was darkness and fog below, the ground lost to view. But the end was in sight, the top of the wall was just a few more feet above.

Those few feet seemed to stretch on for miles, the minutes, hours, as he slowly inched his way up, but finally his hand grasped the edge, fingers curling around the edge. Kicking in some of the mortar with his boot to secure better footing, he leveraged his other hand up. "Almost there!"

Then something grabbed his hands, holding them against the rock, not letting him move. Water splashed on his visor, blurring his vision as the rain got even heavier, the force straining to push him down. "Jaune." He could just make out a dark shape with long hair crouched on the wall top above him, hands placed on his own.

The grip on his hands tightened to near crushing even with his gauntlets as he could hear the sound of metal bending over the driving rain, strangely clear. "A hunter's got to be able to fall Jaune."

With an effortless shove, the shadow threw his hands from the wall. For a second he seemed to hang their, his arms wheeling in the air, as the tips of his boots stayed wedged into the wall. Plans flashed through his mind for trying to leverage forward, to gain a grip, but then gravity seized him and he began to fall. As he did, the rain cleared for a brief second, giving him a perfect view of the shadowy figure, before the darkness swallowed him.

With a gasp, Jaune bolted upright, heart beating widely. Unfamiliar bare walls stared back at him. "Wha?"

"Jaune, are you okay?" He jerked his head to the side, trying to figure out who had spoken as his dream fogged mind didn't recognize the voice, before his eyes fixed on the figure in the bed next to his. It was his partner, Pyrrha, looking at him with a small frown on her face and concern filling her green eyes.

Yesterday slowly trickled back to him, filling in where he was, and he took a second to take a deep breath and relax, feeling his heart slow as he did. "Yeah...yeah, I'm fine. Just a bad dream from the fall yesterday and the stress."

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked, still staring at him, and partially pushed her blanket aside to get to a more comfortable position.

He tried not to get distracted by her rather revealing nightwear. Sure, it was just a long shirt and shorts, but to see it on a real girl rather than a picture was different, more intimate. Shaking his head to clear those thoughts, he focused on her question. "Nah, there's nothing to talk about. What time is it anyway?"

"Dawn or close to it," answered Pyrrha. "I have not checked my scroll yet."

That's what he would have guessed. He'd had enough nightmares over the years to know he'd already be back to sleep if it wasn't close to time to wake up. "Body telling you it's time for training?"

She nodded. "I believe this change in schedule is going to take some getting used to."

"Well, depends on if you want to change it. I might keep doing some training before classes. Good way to start the day." Snagging his scroll he flipped it on, making a note to get a clock for the wall; the scroll's screen was rather bright. "Well, I think I'll do a quick run, find our first classroom, then come back here and take my time getting ready for the day. Training can wait till tomorrow. Coming with me?" Their other two teammates were still asleep if Nora's snores and Ren's rhythmic breathing were anything to go by.

"The sounds like an agreeable plan." She gave a nod, and began to get out of bed, making Jaune flush and turn away as her shirt rode up slightly. This would take some getting used to.

* * *

Professor Peter Port proudly preached... No, that wouldn't work. Professor Peter Port pontificated ponderously to proud pupils? That certainly was better. Jaune was quite proud of his work, it had taken most of the class to complete. Stories were great and all, he'd based his life goals off them, but Port could make a story filled with flesh devouring monsters and daring deeds as exciting as watching paint dry. And not even Dust paint was fun to watch, even when it had a three percent chance of spontaneously combusting instead of drying. The majority of the information on the posters decorating the classroom had come from the book his Mom had made him study, with the few new facts only taking a second to write down, leaving him without anything but a drone of background noise.

So he was bored. So very very bored. If this was what Signal would have been like he was glad to miss it. Even if it meant missing out on girls. Girls who wore short uniform skirts and who... No, no more of those thoughts. Go back to something safe, like being bored bored bored bored….

"So who among you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?" He jerked up, not having been asleep, but not quite awake, as the Professor finished his speech.

"I do, sir!" Weiss practically leapt out of her seat, hand raised.

"Me!" Damn, a second too slow, Weiss had beat him to it. Still, he'd get to see the beautiful, graceful girl fight.

Port nodded happily. "Eager volunteers I see. Very well, then let's find out Ms. Schnee. Go prepare your gear, and then you'll face your opponent."

Weiss stepped out of the room, giving the other students the excuse to start talking to each other. But Jaune's attention was on the proverbial elephant in the room, the shadowed cage that had periodically shaken and growled all during the Professor's lecture. Jaune knew it had to be a Grimm, nothing else had those red, glowing eyes. But what type, that flash of white could have been a very long claw, or possibly a tusk. "Professor Port, sir, I have a question."

The Professor turned to face him from where he'd been grabbing his weapon, a blunderbuss axe hybrid, from its place on the wall. "Oh course my boy, we have a minute while the young Ms. Schnee prepares. What did you wish to know?"

"Is that a Boarbatusk?" The cage rattled again, as if the creature recognized its name.

"Good eye to see that from there. But don't tell Ms. Schnee, a good hunter must be able to deal with surprises." Port let out a chuckle, his belly wobbling, and patted the cage. It growled in response.

Damn, that meant he had really missed his chance. "But where did you get it sir? I really want to fight a Boarbatusk." And he did. He'd thought he'd get the opportunity in the initiation, but he hadn't seen one. Then again it would have been tough to follow through in initiation.

"Well," Professor Port scratched his mustache thoughtfully. "Off the south side of the plateau is where I normally hunt for them, in the fields bordering the Emerald Forest. There's usually a few worth capturing there. If not, there's the Camlann fields, but you really need to take a Dustplane to get there."

The door opened; Weiss was back. "Thank you sir."

"Of course m'boy. Now, ready Ms. Schnee?" Port grabbed his weapon, hoisting it by the barrel, how he expected to fight with the blades on the handle Jaune had no clue, and stood next to the cage. Weiss's team was cheering for her, including...yes Blake had a team flag. Color coordinated and everything. Did he miss a memo about team spirit, was he going to fail as leader on the first day?

"Let the match begin!" Jaune's thoughts were cut off as Port cut the lock on the cage, the door swinging open as the Boarbatusk charged out at Weiss.

She was graceful, her blows swift and sure, even when the unexpected happened and she lost her weapon. He could watch her for hours...and that sounded slightly creepier than he expected, but she was just so beautiful. Even her side pony-tail, it should have thrown off the symmetry of her outfit, but she made it work, like contrasting colors making the whole better.

But what was up with her attitude, snapping at Ruby like that?

* * *

"So, Lady-Killer, why the interest in Boarbatusks, want to expand your photo album?" Yang leaned over the cafeteria table, stealing one of the strawberries off his plate.

He successfully fended off another foray with his knife, blocking her fork. Weiss's glare put an end to the impromptu cutlery duel. "No, but thanks for reminding me. We totally forgot to take a picture of those Arachne. And Ozpin wants a copy of our group photo."

"Wha- really?" Weiss, who'd been pretending not to be listening to their conversation as it was below her, was taken aback. "Professor Ozpin asked for a copy of that juvenile picture?"

"Yeah, said something about marketing pamphlets. So maybe we'll be famous. Could even end up on a cereal box." He gave Pyrrha small nudge as she blushed. Speaking of, he really needed to get that breakfast shake recipe from his Dad, and send him a copy of the photo; he'd get a kick out of it. And his sisters, they'd appreciate it. He didn't think even Bianca had managed to take down a Grimm that large during their first semester at Beacon, and she was like walking artillery.

"So, what's the reason then? Is it because you want bacon? I can understand that, bacon goes great with pancakes." Either Nora's entire plate was covered in a base layer of pancakes, or she was using a giant pancake as a plate. He couldn't quite figure out which, and wasn't brave enough to ask yet. Some things he just wasn't ready to learn about that girl.

"Nora, your obsession is showing again." Ren continued to stare into his tea like it had the answers to the universe. Maybe it did, semblances were weird like that and he still hadn't told them what his did. Most of his team seemed to be keeping that information close to their chests, though Nora had proudly announced hers the other day out of the blue, before giving them all static shock hairdos. Hopefully the team training he had planned would break them of that, but then again he was being slightly hypocritical since he hadn't told them his yet.

"Sorry Ren." Nora skewered some more food on her fork, revealing a seam of pancake beneath and answering his question from earlier. At least it seemed like a balanced meal if you ignored the extra pancakes.

And now he wanted bacon. "While bacon is always the answer, this time it's not. Truth is, I need to kill one to be a knight." There was silence for a minute, letting him grab a bite of his own food, and reflect that was a rather stupid way of telling them his life goal. Great, now he'd probably have to deal with a mutiny as they wanted the crazy guy off their team. None of the kids back in Vale had got it either, why would Beacon be different?

The last cookie disappeared off Ruby's plate, leaving only crumbs behind. "You're not just calling yourself a knight cause the armor, sword, and shotgun-shield right? Cause then Crescent Rose would make me the Grim Reaper."

"Or just trying to impress us? Cause I hate to tell you, we're at a school to fight monsters, it doesn't quite work like that. There was a guy the other day trying to claim the statue was his ancestor. Pfh," Yang threw her hair back, "like that would impress me."

"When was that?" asked Ruby, sounding surprised she'd missed that. They'd pretty much just been hanging with their teams since the beginning.

"First day, after I left you and you exploded." Ruby didn't say anything after that, though it looked like Nora was about to as she had perked up at the word explosion.

Jaune cut her off though. "Actually, the statue's of my grandfather, and I doubt there's any other relations here now. All my sisters graduated. If you see him again, mind pointing him out? I'd like to have a little talk with him…" If it was anything besides a talk would depend on the guy in question.

They all went back to eating in silence for a minute, even Ruby who'd pulled out a plate of actual healthy food from somewhere. And no one was calling him crazy yet, a good sign. Maybe that was that.

"So, what did you mean by wishing to be a knight Jaune?" Pyrrha set down her fork, salad finished, and gave him all her attention.

And now it begins, thought Jaune. They'd start poking and prodding his dream, teasing him for it. Asking why wasn't being a hunter enough, or that the knights died out for a reason. One kid who even knew some history accused him of being a traitor to Vale and a wanna-be murderer. But he was proud of his dream, it was what had made him who he was, and he didn't plan to lie about it.

"Ah...well…." Still, he hesitated as he saw his...maybe-friends looking at him, even if Weiss was pretending to ignore the conversation again. Maybe the Band-Aid approach was best, just get it out there? And if they wanted nothing to do with him, so be it. He'd made it through his training that way, he could do it again. "I wanted to be a knight after hearing about my great-great grandfather, the one that made Crocea Mors. That's what got me to want to be a hunter in the first place. I mean, hunters were cool, but knights were straight out of fairytales, and I was related to one. And I never really lost that dream, just kept digging into our history to learn everything I could about him and knights in general. I wanted to truly be one, not just call myself one, you know? Cause it was a title, like being a Hunter, you had to earn it."

He knew his explanation was rambling; he'd never been able to explain himself well, to talk about the drive that kept him going even during his darkest hours when he could barely move with the pain. But what surprised him was the fact he was getting knowing nods from everyone, even Weiss. Cops, military, mercenaries, traders. They were all able to kill Grimm, you had to if you wanted to travel outside the Kingdom walls. But killing Grimm didn't make you a Hunter. One had to earn that through sweat, blood, and tears at one of the academies. Success meant risking life and limb, constant challenge, and little chance of living to a ripe old age. But it also meant the respect of the majority of every within and without the four Kingdoms, and a freedom most people never got to experience. Even if most civilians still thought all you had to do was kill a Grimm and own a fancy weapon to call yourself a Hunter.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Collecting his thoughts, and encouraged by the nods, he plowed onward. "My digging impressed the local Head Librarian, and she got me some books it would have been hard to get otherwise, and helped me get in contact with a few people. We bounced ideas and research back and forth, and in the end I had a list of the Oaths and requirements of knighthood, complete with our best guesses on what they meant. For the last several years, I've been working on meeting those requirements." Maybe that was enough, maybe they'd leave him with that and move on.

He took a sip of water, hoping someone else would pick up the conversation and change the topic. Thankfully, Blake put down her fork. "What books?"

Not what Jaune had been expecting, but he could work with that. "Mainly archaeological journals, like what Doctor Jones writes. Some other older books from before the Great War, copies of copies of copies of originals from way, way back. Even some of Dr. Oobleck's work. I was somewhat of an intern at the library since I spent so much time there studying; I helped them out and was able to poke around." Though it was probably more of them taking pity on him than anything, the library was always well funded and staffed after all, and Ms. Mauve always seemed to be able to spend time with him when he showed up. Especially after his sisters had left she'd been his shoulder to cry on.

"Maybe we'll have to trade books some time." With her piece said, Blake lapsed back into silence and continued to work her way through her tuna salad. Sadly enough, that had probably been the most positive reaction he'd ever had when talking about his love of history, and he didn't even try to suppress the smile working its way across his face.

"And what were the requirements?" asked Ren, finally breaking the staring contest with his tea cup. "I'm curious if they're anything like my clan's own with the martial arts."

And now he was back to wondering where to start. He could talk about it for hours, but for some reason he didn't think they were that patient. And he knew Nora wasn't. "Alright, first thing you have to know is these are all symbolic of things, in addition to being tests. The first, and longest, is to simply be a squire."

"Like a dork?" The question got several sniggers from people, especially Yang.

Jaune felt a flush of embarrassment start to creep across his face, and he had to resist the urge to sink down in his seat. But he knew Ruby, or he thought he did, and she wouldn't have said that on purpose. It had to be a misunderstanding; they were both outdated terms after all. "No, Ruby, squire, not square. Like a servant." No one was telling him to shut up, or that Ruby had been right the first time, so he continued. "Outside of a few rare cases of amazing semblances and lucky timing, most knights came from wealthy families, you had to be to afford the weapons and armor. And that meant they tended to be a tad...arrogant." Jaune ignored Yang's suspicious cough of 'Weiss.'

"So it gave the knights a chance to vet them, and taught them humility by making them clean armor, take care of horses, prepare food, and such. Since there's no real knights around, I ended up serving my dad and his team. Took care of weapons, transportation, grocery shopping, even babysitting. Everything and anything they needed. The good part of it was I got to go on a local mission or two, mainly small stuff they would never have taken except to give me experience. It's technically supposed to continue until you pass the rest of the trials, but my father and me both agreed that Beacon was the way to go." And he needed to get out of the house or she might have taken over his training again, even with his Dad's promise he could see the writing on the wall.

Seeing everybody was still paying attention, even Nora, he continued. "The rest of the trials come in order. First is a trial of perseverance. You have to run and then climb a stone wall in full armor. It was meant to show you'd reached an adequate level of physical strength, and knew how to move in armor."

"Wait, you actually climbed a wall in that suit?" asked Blake, an eyebrow raised. She'd climbed more than her fair share of walls in the past, and to climb one, even an easy one like stone, in armor was no mean feat.

"Nope. The model you saw has been streamlined." And he was proud of that too. He'd spent days adjusting the design just so. "The one I climbed in was worse...andittookmeseventries."

That produced another round of sniggers. "I'm sorry, did you just say you failed miserably seven times and were still too much of a dunce to quit?"

Jaune let out a sigh, another attempt at impressing Weiss backfiring. Pyrrha was still sitting next to him, listening intently, but spared him a sympathetic glance. "I said it took me seven tries. And it's what made me start work on modernizing the armor. Boots and gloves were actually the first things I updated, added better traction. Believe me, nothing's worse than almost making it to the top of a wall, only to have your gauntlet slip on one of the final rocks and end up falling flat on your back. Course, I finished it the traditional way first. Now I could do it blindfolded."

"Really? I'd like to see that. You know, that one wall on the quad looks kinda like stone." Ren gave a small smirk as he finished, the one Jaune had learned meant he was joking.

"No, not really, that's why I added the jet pack. But I did make sure I could do it every time I modified my armor, and kept practicing. Moving in its second nature now, I can even sleep in it." And that had taken some getting used to, but with the modern padding materials it could be surprisingly comfortable. That, and being exhausted from working always made it simpler.

"So, if that was the first task, what was the second?" asked Pyrrha.

"The second was being able to spear an apple with a lance at full tilt." That one had taken some work to do. Sources couldn't agree if it was supposed to be a lance tilt, or an arrow shot, but considering his luck with ranged weapons he'd chosen to go with the lance. It had taken longer, but was a bit more fun.

"But what did you ride on? I can't imagine you riding a horse. It takes a certain...refinement to control an animal such as that." Well, if one girl was actually going to get a pony for their birthday, it would have been Weiss.

"Hey!" He might like Weiss, but he wasn't going to let that stand. He was quite proud of his accomplishment. "I rode one of those hell beasts once. Stupid thing kept trying to bite or kick me." He gave a pitying shake of his head as everyone laughed at that. They thought he was joking, but just wait until they had to deal with some on a mission, then they'd know his pain. "I know plenty of traders use them, but I wanted something a bit more modern since they don't exactly breed warhorses anymore. Not to mention less likely to bite me out of spite. So I ended up getting an ATV."

Yang perked up at that, tearing her attention back from where it had started to drift over to another group of students a few tables away. "Really, what type?"

"Warthog...or was it a Puma?" He scratched his head before giving a firm nod. "Warthog. Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was a Warthog before we got it modified cause we wanted the extra shock absorption over the acceleration of the Puma."

Yang nodded in understanding. "I looked at the Pumas, but I ended getting an Arcee, because I love the speed and drifting two wheels give. I bet me and my Bumblebee could beat you in a race...but I had to leave it back in Vale." Her originally excited tone faded as she realized her beloved motorcycle was out of reach for the foreseeable future.

"I know what you mean," commiserated Jaune, head down as me recalled his own ATV. "I had to leave Veillantif back at the long term parking as well. You'd win, he's not exactly built for speed, but it'd be a fun race."

Weiss gave a sniff of disapproval. "It's creepy how you refer to a vehicle as a 'he'."

"Oh, you just can't understand the love between a person and their motorcycle. If we get you on one, you'd understand," declared Yang, offended on behalf of Jaune. Sure, an ATV wasn't a true bike, but he at least had some idea about the sacred bond between bike and rider.

"Please, I have my own Dustplane. What would I need a motorcycle for?" Those were fighting words right there, and Yang opened her mouth to tell Weiss exactly where the plane could go.

But Ruby recognized the signs. "So why the boarbatusk?" she asked, cutting off the fight before it could really begin. She was a good leader, watching out for her team like that. And partner, cause she was pretty sure Yang could squish Weiss like a bug, and that wasn't sisterly bias speaking.

"Squires would kill them with just a small dagger as their final test. Knights used all different types of weapons, so it was proof your body, your first weapon, was tough enough. Boarbatusks were the primary Grimm of the plains at the time so-"

"Short explanation." Weiss waved her knife threateningly to make sure he understood. That was more of the reaction he'd been used to.

He'd been babbling again after all, but it was just so fascinating, and for once people actually seemed interested in it. But he just couldn't win with her could he? Though it would help if his mouth would just stop sabotaging him. "I kill it, turn the tusk into a horn, stay up all night, and then I'm a knight."

"Couldn't you have just said that in the first place?" asked Yang, not having expected a lecture when she first asked the question. Though the wall falling was at least good teasing material. She'd have to bring it up next time he tripped. Oh, and get pictures of his ATV. If he'd really tricked it out, it had to be decent.

Jaune could only shrug. "Would any of you really accepted I just wanted to make a horn? I mean, I know it's a weird goal. And sorry, I tend to ramble whenever history's the topic."

Pyrrha nodded. "You do, but it's always very informative. I believe Dr. Oobleck was rather surprised at your answer to his question the other day."

"Ah-huh," added Ruby in agreement. It had gotten the Professor distracted for three minutes, a new record. Of course he'd talked extra fast for the rest of class, and they'd had to slow down a recording later to understand him. "So, what's your plan to find and kill it?"

Jaune scratched his head again, speaking slowly as he gathered his thoughts. "Well, I talked to Professor Port after class the other day and got some more details. He'll let me borrow his capture equipment over break, and I can hunt one down then, and actually kill it back here at the academy." He had a plan now, the completion of his life's goal was in sight, which was a strange thought.

"Right. So, first day of break we'll go and break one's legs?" Nora smashed her fork down to illustrate her point, snapping a poor, innocent piece of bacon in half.

Well, that would be one way of capturing one. "Ah I think that would defeat the purpose of me fighting it." A Boarbatusk with broken legs would be a sad site, more like some kind of slug, then a deadly creature to pit your wits and strength against.

"I believe she means we should plan for the expedition to be the first day of break?" Ren interjected, pushing his empty plate aside.

"You didn't think we'd let our captain go off on his quest alone, did you Jaune?" added Pyrrha with a smile.

He really had to get used to this team thing; he wasn't alone anymore. "Thought never crossed my mind. We'll plan it out in more detail when it gets closer." The talk switched to more mundane topics, and Jaune let it sweep over him. It was good to have friends his own age to watch his back, and he could only hope it was a sign his own team would be as close knit as his Dad's.

* * *

 **Scholar's Note: Migration**

It seems that we aren't the only ones who migrate. In the last dig site, I found older pottery showing pictures of Grimm which are either no longer native to the area, or are much, much rarer. I believe the one set of shards recovered, see attachment 22, is a rudimentary after action report, and if it is accurate, they suffered from higher concentration of Raus and Boarbatusk attacks then the more common Beowolves found in the area now. As we have never noted Grimm preying on other Grimm outside the Sobek, I believe this may relate somehow to humans own fears. Or perhaps a reaction to the environment. With the Boarbatusks being a much larger threat on the open fields compared to the stealthier ambush Beowolves, it seems their numbers increased accordingly. This leads me to draw some disturbing conclusions on the fall of Mountain Glenn. Could we have drawn those subterranean Grimm there? Until that time, Creeper sightings had been rare...

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Smaller posting here covering team building, and just what I want a knight to be.

And honestly, this was the driving point of why I wanted to write it, the idea you have to do more than have a sword and shield to be a knight.

The trials of knighthood were inspired by Court Jester (a hilariously funny old movie,) but have been tweaked slightly.

Less action compared to the prior chapters, but lots of information in it. Some foreshadowing, some key items, etc.

And I hope I explained some of Jaune's social, situation before Beacon as a result of not going to Signal. Imagine being an ROTC recruit on a highly liberal college campus, a nerd among jocks, or the one person who doesn't care about football in a small town. Then you'll kind of get what it was like for Jaune growing up with Hunter parents, and then not going to Signal. Civilian kids just didn't get it.

Hope you liked it, and remember, Favorites are good, but Reviews are Awesome.

Merry Christmas. Posted 12/25/15


	7. Chapter 7

"Team Leader Ruby Rose, would you be interested in participating in an intra-team dynamics and trust building operation with Team JPNR?"

Ruby blinked, cookie halfway to her mouth, trying to comprehend what Jaune had just said. "Huh?"

Weiss sighed, but had come to expect it from her leader. Give her something weapon related and she'd amaze experts. Anything else and it was hit or miss. "Dunce," she said almost affectionately. "He asked if you wanted to participate in team practices."

"I knew I shouldn't have trusted that word of the day calendar," Jaune mumbled to himself before leaning against the dorm room door. "Sorry about that, trying to improve my vocabulary. I can reel off a half dozen obscure archeology terms and their meanings, but Professor Sinopiatax still thinks my report writing skills are bad."

"Really, no report writing one-oh-one for you?" asked Yang from where she was lounging on her bed, scroll in hand.

"No Signal, remember?" And his Dad's report writing skills left a lot to be desired. There was a reason his mother was the one to write their reports, and there was no way he was asking her.

"Oh yeah." Yang paused, then suddenly sat bolt upright. "Hey, wait a minute, am I the only one who took that class?" She did a quick tally in her head. Ruby had skipped that year, Blake never did combat school either, and Weiss did whatever Weiss had done. "Oh, there is no way I'm checking all your work!"

"Well, at least Ruby has an excuse for her bad writing." Weiss ignored Ruby's cry of protest, continuing on, "and she's improving, what's your excuse?"

"The professor's sense of humor is about as dry as his writing and he can't appreciate a good pun. It's my job to change that by being a punny as possible!" Yang waited for the groans to die down before flopping back onto her bed.

"Ah, anyway, getting back on topic. You want to do some team training with us? One thing I learned from my parents is hunters end up working with a bunch of different people. I mean, my parents teams go on jobs with each other as much as they go alone. I thought we could get some practice in. I had booked some time in one of the combat arenas for my own team and I was thinking we should liven it up and…" Realizing he was babbling and at some point had stepped away from his cool pose leaning against the door jam, Jaune froze, then clasped his hands behind his back in an effort to get them to stop fluttering. He promised himself he'd work on that later; apparently stress and cute girls ruined all his efforts to stop that nervous habit.

Yang gave up all pretense of trying to look at her scroll, dropping it to the bed. "Your parents' teams? And you asked Ruby? This isn't some weird way of asking my sister out, is it?" Yang cracked her knuckles threateningly, and the fact she wasn't wearing Ember Celica did nothing to diminish the implied violence.

As if under a mind of their own, Jaune's hands came up to wave frantically in denial, and he considered the fact that maybe his subconscious was smarter than he was, or at least had a better sense of self-preservation. He didn't want Yang thinking he was after Ruby, which was a surefire way to waking up with a dead Nevermore in your bed as a warning. What she'd done to that third year who was hitting on Ruby was already legend. Not that he thought Ruby actually realized that was what the guy had been doing. "No no no, nothing like that. Just team building, honest. And Pyrrha's getting a bit tired of beating us up."

Ruby brightened up, not only was this a chance to show her leadership, but to hang out with their friends. "Team RWBY's up for the challenge." She paused, cocking her head to the side. "You know, I really feel like I'm talking in third person when I say that."

"Cool. We've got arena two booked for tomorrow after dinner. If we like it, maybe we can set up a regular thing?" Jaune tried to ignore the finger Yang drew across her throat behind Ruby's back. It was just training.

* * *

"So, what do you normally do at these?" Surprisingly it was Blake that asked the question, Jaune would have thought it'd have been Yang or Weiss. Then again, Weiss actually looked rather happy to be here training, or at least he thought she did. He had trouble reading people in general, and she and Blake were more difficult than most.

Pyrrha took a moment from making sure her greaves were properly attached to look up. "Well, we've been drawing inspiration from my previous trainings. We do free-for-alls, partner on partner, three versus one, dodging, hand to hand, combos, deflection, and some more...esoteric ideas Jaune came up with."

"Like the weapon swaps; you can't forget those! That was a fun practice!" Nora tried to hold back a giggle as she remembered that evening.

"Crescent Rose is my baby!"

"You're not getting your barbarian hands on Myrtenaster!"

As the twin shouts faded, the two partners looked at each other, Ruby's eyes shining with excitement at this moment of bonding. Weiss just sniffed and turned away to glare at Jaune, but didn't complain when Ruby stepped up next to her in a show of solidarity.

He raised his hands, then quickly dropped them as both girls shifted their grips like they were preparing to use those very same weapons on him. Letting his hands fall he took a step back, realizing as he did that his gesture of peace might have looked instead like he was making a grab for their weapons. Only to a cautious, person who depended on their weapon for their survival of course, but that described the entire school. "Whoa, easy there we only did that once, and that's cause I was afraid to touch Magnhild without making it explode."

"You did make it explode!" There was no holding back the laughter this time as Nora broke down at Ren's deadpan summary of the events.

"So, you guys had a blast? Huh? Huh?" Yang's pun was met with silence, even Nora's laughter stopping dead. "Oh, you all suck."

Pyrrha knew Jaune never wanted to talk about the practice again; he'd been horribly embarrassed afterwards when she'd approached him about what a wonderful trust building exercise it had been. That was when she realized he didn't know the connotations of sharing weapons like that. When recognition and reward depended on your ability to best your fellow classmates in the various tournaments and classes, allowing them the advantage of knowing your weapon's abilities was a serious sign of trust; she'd never allowed any but her family to handle Akuna and Milo. Afterwards she'd noticed he kept a closer eye, and hold, on Durandal, and had never brought up the idea again. Probably because the embarrassment of not knowing, but she thought he'd looked rather cute when he'd blushed.

So with that thought in mind she tried to get the conversation back on topic, earning a surprised look from Jaune. "It was good reasoning; now that we're a team if a comrade is knocked out we need to know how to handle their weapon safely, if only for transport. But I believe we had some training to do? Perhaps partner matches? JPNR versus RWBY?"

"Dibs on the Tin Can," laughed Yang even as Ember Celica extended down her arms, and ignoring Jaune's wince. "You ready for this partner?" Blake nodded, reaching up over her shoulder to loosen Gambol Shroud in its cleaver sheathe.

"Standard tourney rules?" asked Ren as he walked toward the other half of the arena, Nora humming cheerfully by his side.

"Yeah, I'll trigger the countdown when everyone's ready, my scroll's already linked to the system." Jaune sank down into a ready stance as he waited for the other two pairs to clear the middle line, mindful of the fact he was in the cut down version of his armor he used for training. Ruby gave him a cheery wave as a barrier slid up between the two halves, and with another tap of his scroll the countdown timer started.

Angling his elbow toward Yang, he nodded slightly as the countdown hit yellow, seeing Pyrrha's own small nod of acknowledgement.

The buzzer sounded and Yang launched herself forward with a laugh, Ember Celica boosting her charge towards Pyrrha. The redhead ran forward in her own charge, Akoúo̱ raised up in front. Then she juked to the side, intercepting the unprepared Blake as Jaune slid into her place, his own larger shield raised to block Yang.

The echo of twin shotgun blasts rang out as Ember Celica and his shield fired simultaneously. Yang came off slightly worse in the exchange, his shield absorbing the blast while she barely managed to twist her own arm to partially block the blow. But if anything the partial hit seemed to motivate her and she continued her assault, sliding slightly to the side in an attempt to get around his shield as her leg came up in a sweeping kick to brush aside his sword. He let her, noticing she was careful to make sure only the flat of the blade actually hit her leg before she completed her spin and followed through with a double punch.

A minute adjustment of his shield let him block it, and he stood his ground, anchoring himself in place with a trick his dad had shown him. The fact he wasn't flying backwards clearly surprised Yang, and he took advantage of that, twisting his sword back around to get in a solid hit across her torso before bringing his sword back into a defensive stance.

Yang had let the blow push her back, flickers of fire appearing around her for a second. But before she could charge Jaune stepped forward into range, striking out with several blows. He'd seen her fight in class, once she got momentum she was tough to stop, hitting hard and fast and keeping opponents off balance. He knew there had to be a trick there with her semblance, but he hadn't quite figured it out yet. But if he kept pushing against her, kept her from getting her bearing and regaining the initiative, he'd have a chance. She blocked, falling back a few steps as she did, and Jaune pursued, careful to keep his shield between them.

From the corner of his eye he could see Pyrrha and Blake dancing around each other in a series of blows, and he could hear the familiar rapid fire of Storm Flower and the boom of Nora's grenades from the other side of the wall. He didn't let it distract him, trusting Pyrrha to keep to the plan.

He brought his attention back to Yang, who backpedaled again to get space, her semblance glowing around her. The first clue he had it was a feint was when she seemingly teleported to his side, having changed her back step into a lunging jump and a midair redirection with Ember Celica. Jaune spun, trying to keep his shield between them, knowing it was too late and putting more speed in to try and compensate. It was a mistake, and just what she was waiting for. The moment his one foot was off the ground, she fired with her other gauntlet. Without the proper base to pull off his aura sticking trick, he felt himself get blown backward.

Now it was her turn to pursue, blasting forward to begin her assault. Trusting his aura enhanced armor he let her first strike hit right on the chest, the blow pushing him back and down. Yang's other arm was already coming forward for a follow up punch, a huge grin splitting her face, as he felt his foot touch ground.

He latched on, proper base or no proper base, pumping aura into the limb. His foot declared, 'I am here, and I'm not moving' and the world seemed to come to a halt. But it was only him, his leg feeling like he'd ripped it from the socket as his aura told the world he was staying where he was, and the world agreed, but only if physics got its say.

As the air was driven from his lungs by the collision with the floor he saw Yang fly by overhead, her grin turning into a look of startled confusion. Not allowing himself to rest he hauled himself up, and was there with a sword blow as she landed and recovered.

Meanwhile, Blake was having the hardest fight of her life. She'd taken on guards, human and robot, dozens of times before, always ending the fights swiftly and silently. But Pyrrha was on a whole other level, dodging blows Blake knew she couldn't see coming, and seeing through every trick she tried with her semblance. Not a single clone distracted her. It was almost like she was toying with her.

Dodging backward she threw a spread of throwing knifes, not designed to hit, but to give her a bit of breathing room. Pyrrha charged straight through a gap in the arc, as if knowing they wouldn't hit her, and denying her the second she needed to regroup.

Maybe she was sensing the dust? It wouldn't be the strangest Semblance she'd heard of. Pyrrha wasn't giving her a second to catch her breath, and even unloading Gambol's clip did nothing as she simply raised her shield. Then her spear lashed out, forcing Blake to dodge backward, her shadow clone taking the blow even as the spear changed to point at where she'd dodged to.

Maybe the ribbon would help, she seemed to have a bit more trouble with that. A plan in mind, Blake went to move forward, but was interrupted when pain flared in her back, throwing her forward. Pyrrha was waiting, Akoúo̱ smashing into her before she could regain her footing. Then there was blackness.

"Blake!" screamed Yang. Seeing her partner go down to shot she'd thought had been aimed at her made her semblance flare up, her eyes turning a deep red even as flames licked around her. At least now he'd get a better idea of what her Semblance was, figured Jaune as he and Pyrrha closed in on Yang.

* * *

"So, what we'd learn?" asked Jaune as he leaned on Durandal, letting the brisk air of the arena cool him down.

"Oh, I know, I know. Pick me, pick me." Nora bounced in place, arm in the air.

Well, he hadn't actually been expecting an answer, but he'd roll with it. "Yes Nora?"

"Having my grenades bounced back at me really hurts," she declared solemnly.

"Yes, yes it does," agreed Ren, hand going to rub a spot on his leg where his outfit looked a tad singed.

Ouch, having been on the other end of Nora's grenades enough times in practice, he could imagine how a surprise blow would feel. He figured Ren would be used to it by now though. "While that might be true, I was looking for something more along the lines of, Team Juniper rocks."

"Hey," snapped Weiss, "It was close!"

"Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." Now Pyrrha was getting in on the ribbing, even if her trash talked seemed rather dated.

But apparently it worked well for Nora, who continued the teasing with a stage whisper. "That's why I picked grenades."

Jaune basked in the glory of victory. Despite their team flags and odd synchronization, his team had triumphed over RWBY! "Hey, we're the winners. Winners have gloating rights, at least for a while."

Yang, Ruby, and Nora, all nodded as one. "Yeah, it's in the rules."

"But don't think we won't remember this next time," announced Yang. "It'll be our turn, and I'll send you to knighty-knight land Jaune."

"Hmp." Weiss just sniffed and turned away, though Jaune couldn't guess if it was the terrible pun, or the loss.

"And gloating is done now. So, seriously, what did we learn? Dad always said a spars useless unless you learn something from it." Pulling up Durandal, he slung it over his back. "Usually we do a review session watching the recordings after a fight and pick apart what we did good and bad. Pyrrha gives some great commentary."

"It's our version of movie night," added Nora cheerfully. "Ren makes the best snacks."

Pyrrha nodded in agreement, eyes losing focus for a second as she thought of the tasty, tasty snacks. "His snacks are delicious, they certainly makes the reviews much more entertaining than the times I did it to prepare for a match in the arena."

"Will there be cookies?" demanded Ruby, eyes narrowed at the thought they might not have the best of snack foods.

"There will be cookies," confirmed Ren. Jaune had already asked him to bake some ahead of time.

"Yes! Then Team RWBY is there!" With that she disappeared in the direction of the girl's locker room, leaving a fading trail of petals behind her.

"Great, now she's making decisions based on baked goods," moaned Weiss quietly, following after her. But she wasn't actually worried, the chance to self-critique their performance was worth it. She knew her foot had been too far forward during the one lunge.

As the others trudged off to get cleaned up before the review, Jaune sidled over to Ren, then realized what he was doing. They were the only boys, no reason to be discrete. "Hey Ren, so tell me, how close was it?"

"Very close. Our only advantage was we've been working together forever. The moment they get their teamwork together, I give them better than fifty-fifty chances of kicking our ass." He didn't actually look bothered by the prospect of it though.

"Yang was the same. If Pyrrha hadn't been there, I would've gotten pounded to paste eventually." And he knew it; her Semblance was nothing to laugh at, even if his gave a pretty good counter for it. But he intended to keep that secret for a little while longer; Dad had always preached the value of a good trump card. "

Well, we'll just have to keep getting better, won't we?" And Jaune was determined to do just that. Their two teams were the best of the first years, and he intended to keep it that way. He wouldn't be the first Arc to break that tradition.

* * *

"Please, he shot you in the back, that wasn't very knightly of him." Jaune froze at hearing Yang's comment, hands clenching at his side. "I mean, I would have expected something like that from Ren, or you."

"It was a perfectly acceptable tactic," answered back Blake. He could barely hear her compared to Yang's boisterously loud voice, and assumed she must be by the door.

"Well yeah. But he was the one telling us he wanted to be a knight. Isn't there some rule about fair fights or something like that? He was barely blocking my blows, if he hadn't hit you in the back like that I'd have crushed him and then we'd have won." Her voice faded away, which meant she was probably walking into her team's bathroom, but he didn't hear any of the others disputing what she'd said.

A new voice spoke, and he realized it was Weiss. "There's a reason Atlas named the robot series 'Knight...'" His breath caught in his throat at hearing that from her, even if the rest of whatever she said was too muted to make out. More murmurs came from the people inside the room as they moved about, but nothing loud enough for him to hear clearly except for the occasional odd word, like 'Honor.' But he could guess what they were talking about, he'd heard it all before.

He resisted the urge to walk away, to leave them alone. But he'd volunteered to wait and show them the room they'd commandeered for review purposes after they had gotten changed into their pajamas, and a promise was a promise. After Nora called it 'Movie Night' Ruby had insisted, and the other girls had gone along with her demand.

The fight had ended on such a good note he wouldn't have expected it from them. As he stood there, stewing in his thoughts, he realized he really should've, at least from Yang. He didn't think Ruby had a mean bone in her body, but the way Yang constantly teased people even when they clearly wanted to be left alone should have been a warning sign.

That shot had been a valid tactic! Pyrrha and him and been working on perfecting their teamwork since the start of term, and there was no reason not to use it there! They'd specifically said partner matches, not one on one duels; it was meant to simulate a fight. Here they were training to fight monsters, both Grimm and human, and only victory held honor, no matter the tactics used if they were within the rules of the engagement. That was the whole point of the sparring in the first place!

He'd thought they'd get that here in Beacon; that was the only reason he'd proposed the training in the first place. But they were turning out just like his old ex-friends that went to Signal. So what if he wanted to be a knight and didn't go to Signal? That didn't mean he was just going to roll over and let them win in a spar, that he wasn't going to take the obvious openings presented to him.

Every friend that turned on him after a match was just proof that the training he'd slaved through had worked. The victory was proof that all the pain had been worth it, had meaning to it. Or at least that was what he tried to tell himself. Pain flared in his hands, and he realized he'd clenched them so tight that if it wasn't for his aura enhanced healing, he was sure his palms would be bleeding. But the pain, accidental or not, had served a purpose, pulling him back from his memories to the present.

What did Yang know about honor anyway? She was just like all the rest, thinking they knew what it meant to be a knight based on stereotypes and fairytales. The door next to him opened abruptly, Team RWBY piling out into the hall. He resisted the urge to snap at them, demanding to know what had taken them so long, and instead just grunted out, "Come on."

He set a swift pace down the hallways to and stairs to the dorm lounge they'd borrowed for the night, pettily relishing in how the shorter girls had to rush to keep up with his longer stride. Pyrrha had already synched her scroll, and he could see their fight videos queued, along with a few of the recordings from their combat class for the week. No longer in the mood for snacks, he grabbed a bottle of water and slumped down in one of the chairs. Now he was angry at himself for taking out his frustration at the entirety of RWBY, because at least Blake had defended him.

He brooded some more in silence as the videos played, only half-heartedly listening as Weiss and Ren debated some finer part of their match as Ruby and Nora turned back and forth between the two like they were watching some kind of tennis match. Then the screens switched to his own fight, reigniting the smoldering ember of anger.

So caught up in his own thoughts he barely heard it when Pyrrha turned to ask his opinion on something. "Jaune, do you have anything to add?"

"Wha?"

"About the fight. You generally have good insight." Pyrrha was looking at him with some concern now. Besides herself, he was generally the other large contributor to their sessions, due to his own, in her opinion, rather harsh self-criticism. But with it came the ability to pick apart a sequence of moves and countermoves, pointing out when and where other paths could have been taken that would have changed the flow of the fight. She could only assume there had been something with his training in the past that drove him to so harshly judge himself. It almost reminded her of her fellow Great Names in Mistral, who had their families' expectations bearing down on them and felt they needed to live up to their legacies. She'd seen the same look on their faces in the past when she beat them in a match; the same obsessive reviews in the contender area between bouts. But now he seemed listless, like he wasn't even paying attention, when he'd been the one to push for the session in the first place.

Jaune looked at the picture frozen on the screen, and tried to guess what Pyrrha had just been talking about, too proud to actually ask and admit he hadn't been listening. "Blake, you forgot it was a partner's duel. If you were having trouble with Pyrrha, you should have called for help. Both you and Yang are fast enough that if you tried to get together, Pyrrha and I would have had trouble stopping you. But your evasions and dodges are top notch, you lasted longer against Pyrrha alone then any of the rest of our team did on our first tries, including me."

Blake nodded, taking the criticism and compliment as it was meant, and agreeing with it. She was so used to working with her old partner or alone that the switch to a brawler like Yang left her feeling slightly out of place. Maybe a few more training sessions like these would help with that.

"Sometimes keeping a superior fighter occupied trying to catch you is all you need to ensure victory. But if you can take them out as well, that's even better. Try some caltrops or mines next time," added Ren from his own seat. "Your dodges would have the enemy stepping right on them."

That comment made a thoughtful expression cross Blake's face as she considered it. She'd never used bombs of any type before, or even Dust really. It was too loud and flashy for most of her previous missions; she preferred her knives and Gambol Shroud. But now there was nothing holding her back. Maybe it was time to expand her tools.

The conversation died, and Jaune realized they were looking at him again. He knew he should probably talk about his own performance, that's what they were likely waiting for. But seeing that smirk on Yang's frozen face in the image was too much for him. He'd had enough of taking other people's jokes and criticisms, it was time to give his own. "You were stupid. When your partner went down, you did the worst thing possible and went berserk. My guess based on the aura meter readings is when you're like that you take hits just like normal, only your own strikes are stronger. You were facing two shield users; all we had to do was block you and bleed you dry, and that huge chunk of your aura you traded for that power up when you went berserk? It did nothing for you but let us 'kill' you faster. Better to have played it safer and tried to take out one of us with a surprise blow rather than telegraphing it ahead of time with that useless light show. All you did was give us warning to hunker down and prepare. But that assumes you have control over your semblance, rather than losing your temper at the drop of a pin."

There was silence in the room as Jaune's scathing review ended, the last few words seeming to hang around. "I call bullshit."

"What?"

"I said, I call bullshit." Yang flung her hair back over her shoulder and glared at Jaune. The fact she was just in her pajamas somehow made it even more intimidating. "Yeah, we're reviewing. But that? That wasn't a critique. That was you trying to burn me more than fire dust. What's your problem?"

"Problem? My problem is you! You made a stupid mistake, one that could get us killed in a real fight!" And you're a two faced liar, wanted to scream Jaune, but he managed to keep that to himself, if barely.

Yang's eyes were starting to flicker red now. "Real fight?! News flash, we were training!"

"Jaune, she's right." Jaune turned to his partner, a betrayed look on his face. Of all the people besides Ruby, he'd have thought she would side with him. That's what partners were supposed to be. "You are the one that told me you wanted these training sessions to work. This isn't like you at all. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?! She's wrong! She's just like the others." Some part of his mind was screaming that Pyrrha hadn't heard what Yang and Weiss had said, that she didn't know, and that he should try and explain. But that was buried beneath the anger.

"What others?" demanded Yang? "I'm one of a kind."

"Oh, don't pretend like you don't know," he snapped, whirling back to face her. Now he had a target, and it all came pouring out. "You're popular, I bet you knew some of them before at Signal, and they even told you about their 'crazy' old friend. What, didn't make the connection until lunch that day, is that why you even asked in the first place? You're just like they were, asking about my dreams and then making fun of me! I heard you in your room!" He relished the brief glimpse of apprehension that appeared on her face; for once the tables were turned and it wasn't him being verbally attacked. "Not knightly, am I? Not honorable?" His chest was heaving, and he realized he was standing now. When had he gotten out of his chair? Everyone was staring at him, and he stumbled a step back, the idea of going for the door darting through his head.

Whatever his thoughts were, they must have shown on his face, because Yang was suddenly on her feet, a finger thrusting at his chest. "Oh no, you don't get to run after saying that! Sit back down!" The tone was so much like his mom he involuntarily found himself back in the chair. "That was your issue? Really? Jaune, I thought we were friends. By now you should know that's how I am! I tease and joke. And that's all I was doing; I lost so of course I'm going to joke about it! You know all your friends aren't just waiting to stab you in the back right?""

"Since when?"

The words were out before he could stop them. The flames flickering in Yang's hair abruptly died and silence filled the room. The hidden fear that they'd been making fun of his dream behind his back this entire time; that small itch in the back of his mind he'd never managed to get rid of after telling them his dreams at lunch and their too easy acceptance of it. It flared to life, fueling his words as much as the anger did, and they spilled out in a torrent.

"That's just how it starts, that's how it always started. First its jokes, then the insults, then the nasty messages. They dig up every little thing you've ever told them and throw it back in your face. They joke about how you'll never be a hunter, never succeed. That's its stupid, and it was time I grew up and stopped playing pretend? Well, newsflash for you! I'm here! I beat you! I earned my place in Beacon through sweat, blood, and tears, and I am not about to stop now!"

The room was still as he finished. Jaune's eyes widened as he realized what he'd done, what he'd admitted to. Their stunned expressions told him they'd heard what he said, and what he hadn't. Flashes of surprise, anger, and even...hurt.

This time no one stopped him when he ran for the door.

* * *

 **Scholar's Note:**

In the aftermath of the Great War, the Kingdoms were shaken. Grimm were encroaching into areas deemed safe for decades, if not centuries, and core areas of the Kingdoms were at risk. Everyone was anxious, wondering if their leaders' rhetoric had been just that, empty words, if the war and skirmishes would begin again as soon as they got their houses in order. The question in everyone's mind was had they traded one set of tyrants for another?

The first act of the new Council in Vale had been to establish Signal and Beacon on two landmarks of the war that had stood bright and strong, even as their contemporaries in the other Kingdoms did the same. Their second was to introduce the combat arena. Here they could point to the new generation of Grimm killers, now called Hunters, and say 'Look at your brave protectors. See their strength. You have nothing to fear.'

And it worked. By the time the first class graduated from Beacon, Grimm concentrations and attacks were noticeably down in the area, as the people's fear had decreased.

This has since evolved into competitions and Tournaments throughout the Kingdoms, including the great Vytal games, but the idea originally dates back to the Mistral games. That coliseum is old, its ground stained by the blood of thousands through the centuries. And its foundation is even older. It's possible there might be a clue buried in its old store rooms and tunnels, hidden by fake walls or ancient sublevels, but I don't think so. The myths seem mostly centered in the Vale and Vacuo regions.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

Well, I know this chapter is late by a week, but I assure you it was worth it.

Thanks to the amazing College Fool, it's twice as long as it was thanks to his ideas about how to improve the characters, which ended up expanding the chapter significantly and taking it several grades above what it had been.

And many thanks to LaughingLefou, who helped by betaing the chapter and as another sounding board for ideas and feedback.

I honestly do think that in the beginning, despite being powerhouses, that the partners of Team RWBY would fall to the Nora Ren combo, just due to the extensive teamwork and past that Nora and Ren imply having. I think this would be a short term thing, and very quickly RWBY would surpass them without additional training. Especially on stamina, as Ren's appears to be weak in the series. And a combo like Yang and Ruby, who do have a history of working together, would beat them.

Sinopiatax - Play on Sinopia, a color, and syntax, aka language rules. I had way too much fun coming up with that. Even if he will never make another appearance. Maybe.


	8. Chapter 8

Jaune ran blindly through the hallways, anger, fear, and shame warring in his head and driving him on. Why had he said that? What had he done? When had it gone so wrong? It was only the chill of the concrete on his bare feet that managed to tear him from the storm of his thoughts. It was with some shock that he realized he had somehow managed to make it to the middle of the courtyard despite not remembering ever running through any doors or down stairs.

Normally a bright and cheery place filled with bustling students, now it was cast in shades of grey. The only sounds were the buzz of the harsh electric lights and the insects drawn to them. It was strange to see it so deserted, and Jaune realized as he stared around at the empty plaza, he'd never been out this close to curfew before.

It wasn't an enforced rule that students be back in their rooms by a certain time, more of a guideline. But common sense said that attending a combat class half asleep was a good way to find oneself serving as the target part of target practice. So he'd always made sure to be in bed by a decent hour. It helped that he'd been getting up early for practice for years, and was used to the schedule.

The statue in the center fascinated him; no light shone on it, instead it was bathed by the indirect glow of the surrounding pillars. The setup caused the hooded faces of the two Hunters to be cast into shadow, and gave the frozen Beowolf an even more sinister air then the snarling monster normally had. But the dark didn't bother him.

He knew those faces; had spent countless hours researching them when he'd been told the connection. Scarlett the Beowolf Slayer, one of the founders of the academy and a heroine of the war. The other though, he knew if he shone a light on it he'd see the weathered stone face of his grandfather, be able to pick out familiar features like the pointy chin so many of the Arcs had.

Staring up at the man he'd always idealized, alone in the empty square, Jaune felt suddenly drained. The cold seemed to cut straight through his pajama pants as he sank onto one of the stones ringing the statue.

"What would you have done Grandad? You were part of the War, did people call your dreams crazy as well before the rebellion started? Did they say there was no way it would ever work?"

There was no answer, not that Jaune expected one. He doubted he'd get one even if the statue suddenly came alive to talk to him. While it had been easy to find reports on his grandfather's actions; there'd been very little about why he did what he did outside of guesswork and accusations.

Still, it would have been nice if some answer popped into his mind, some brilliant solution appeared to his problems. Instead all he had was an army of mosquitoes trying in vain to get through his aura to bite him.

"Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet, huh? Did Dad get that saying from our family? Did you think that?" That had worked so well the first day, letting him meet Ruby and making his first friend his own age in years. When telling them about his dream, the easy acceptance and even support from people he'd come to care about in a surprisingly short time had made him decide to take a chance.

The thought made him snort, a brief puff of air sending one of the annoying insects flying. It had been that same easy acceptance that drove his paranoia, had kept the small part of him thinking they were talking about him behind his back. Dreaming of being a Knight in an age of hunters and soldiers was strange; to be entranced by the oaths and armors, the legends and myths, when there were so many living heroes to aspire to be like. He knew that. So when they'd never really brought it up again, had left it at just that one lunch of questioning, he'd gotten worried.

Standing he, began to pace around the statue as he tried to untangle the web of his thoughts. Had it really been ego, the thought that someone could hear his dream not make a big deal about it that made him suspect them? He really didn't like the thought of that, but what else could it have been?

When they'd first been made a team, he'd wanted it, wanted to be friends with them. And when the first friend close to his age he'd made in ages ended up on a different team, he'd gotten greedy and hadn't wanted to lose her. So he pushed for the joint team training.

A bitter laugh escaped Jaune as he stopped his pacing, looking towards where the dorms were. He managed to completely screw it up. What he'd done, what he'd said, was stupid. Either they were actually his friends and he'd just told basically told them he thought they'd been lying the entire time to him, ruining any chance with them. Or they were just like the others. In that case, he'd just given them enough fuel that he might as well just light the pyre himself and drop out of Beacon.

Tired of the chill and the bugs, but not feeling ready to go back, Jaune instead started towards the storage lockers, leaving the statue of his grandfather staring into the darkness behind him.

Students had three areas effectively their own at Beacon. There were their rooms, which were shared with their team. Then there was their weapon rocket-locker, where their main weapons and supplies were stashed for casual use and emergency need. Finally, there was their storage room, something Jaune had been extremely grateful for. Sharing a room with people was a new experience, and actually rather nice if he didn't lie to himself. But after coming from being the last child in a house meant to hold eight kids he'd gotten used to having space.

The students were all give a room about the size of a large walk in closet for storing things they wouldn't need immediately, which went in their rocket lockers, but didn't need daily. Usually this amounted to extra ammo, or copies of the gizmos and gadgets most likely to break in their own weapons and which took long enough to fix they wanted a spare on hand. Or extra combat uniforms since they were typically worn hard. He knew some teams combined their rooms, consolidating their stuff in two or three of them, and leaving the spare rooms as another place to hang out.

But he'd never actually told his team where his was; just another of the secrets he'd kept. Since he'd never actually even visited Signal, it meant his ex-friends never had the chance to scribble things on his locker or vandalize his stuff. But he knew from his sisters things like that happened, and he hadn't wanted to take the chance with Beacon. So his locker had stayed just one more anonymous steel door among many of the both decorated and plain ones lining the hallway.

Swiping his scroll to release the lock, he flung up the door, and not bothering with the lights, collapsed onto the one bit of free space he knew was there. The polished concrete of the floor was hardly any more comfortable than outside, but the building was warmer. Still, he knew it didn't really matter; he wouldn't be sleeping here even if he wanted to. His thoughts made it impossible, running like they were in a circle, a hamster on a wheel, and making about the same about of headway.

Getting angry had been a mistake. Going to the review had been a mistake. Yelling like that had been a mistake. He should have pleaded a headache, left it to Pyrrha and Ren and taken a walk to cool down or something. It had just been one stupid conversation, one he'd never been meant to hear. Did it really matter what they said behind his back, as long as they were nice in front?

Of course it did. He wanted friends, true friends. Not the kind that said one thing to his face and another to his back. And he'd ruined his chances over a joke.

He knew Yang was just teasing; he'd had friends that talked like her before. Friends that were no longer friends. So when he'd heard her talk like that, after he let himself believe he'd have friends his own age again, he'd just given into his fears.

And in some ways, hearing Weiss's comment, whatever the rest of it had been, had made it even worse, prompting a feeling of betrayal that burned worse than any cruel jokes would. Sure, she'd made it clear she wasn't interested in him, but that didn't stop his crush. So to hear her talking like that, it hurt. What did he care about what some random people he might never see again thought about his dream? But, they weren't random people. They were his teammates, and maybe his friends.

Restless, he shifted to his side, hand reaching out blindly to for one of the spare ammo boxes he knew was laying around. His fingers traced the slightly indented writing on it in an endless loop as he thought. Now he'd probably messed up that chance and alienated them all with what he'd said and implied. Who'd want to hang out with someone that didn't trust them? Had expected the worse from them?

"I've gone without friends my age for three years, I can make it another four." His words bounced around in the empty room, but still didn't ring with any truth. He knew he was lying to himself.

He'd met his sisters' teams, and now that he was old enough to realize what they'd tried to do for his sisters, for him, he wanted that kind of bond for himself. He craved it.

But he didn't know if he could fix it at this point.

Tomorrow, or maybe today, was Saturday, and he could flip on the light, fashion a makeshift bed from ammo boxes and explosives, then stay the rest of the night. In the morning it would be simple enough to slip out, hop on a Dustplane and be back in Vale where he could talk with Dad, or Ms. Mauve.

But he didn't even need to do that, he could just call them on his scroll. Even his sisters would be happy to help. If there was anything they'd learned growing up, it was that the Arc siblings could always count on each other, come hell or high water. The thought made him snort, his sisters might be there for him, but if he didn't wait until at least morning to call, the advice they'd give would be useless, cause they'd find a way to kill him right afterward.

Instead, he slowly climbed to his feet. He was the one that screwed up, he couldn't place the blame on Yang or Weiss. They were both doing what they did normally. So, it was up to him to fix it.

Maybe, just maybe, being there in the morning when his team woke up would do something to help repair the damage. And if it didn't, his honor demanded he at least try. It would be a start.

* * *

A faint light filtered into the gloom, and as Jaune felt his way along the darkened hall, he realized it was coming from beneath his room's door. He faltered at the sight as any hope of just sneaking in and going to sleep vanished. Could they be awake even now? Why? The thought of going in there and having them all staring at him, or even worse, condemning him, was almost unbearable.

Unconsciously, he took a step back at the thought of going in there and having them all staring at him, or even worse, condemning him, filled his mind. Scenario after scenario, each worse than the last, flashed through his mind, and he took another step.

Then he realized what he was doing. He hadn't gotten through life, through his training to be both a Hunter and a Knight, by giving up. If he had, he'd be living at home, studying to be a professor or a farmer or something. Maybe living with one of his sisters or Grandma in another Kingdom like Mistral, doing whatever it was they did there.

But he wasn't, he was here, in Beacon. He had made it. "Struggle precedes success." The familiar saying was a favorite of his Dad's because it was, as he put it, 'short, sweet, rolled off the tongue, and most importantly, true.' So like his Dad, true on face value, but also having a deeper meaning and worth if dug into. Somehow, saying it aloud helped.

Not giving himself time to think about it anymore, he swiped his scroll, unlocking the door, and eased it open. The light spilled into the hallway, momentarily blinding eyes accustomed to the dark. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, and heard what sounded like someone waking up mid snore. Before he could fully recover, a pink and orange blur rushed toward him, and he braced himself for the slap he was sure was coming.

Instead he found himself picked up and spun around. "Jaune, you came back!" Nora's whisper was as loud as a normal person's indoor voice, and Jaune found himself wincing both from the bone crushing hug, and the fear it would wake up everyone else.

Then again, if Nora was awake, he knew the others had to be as well. Ren stepped behind him and the still clinging Nora, who had carried them both inside the dorm room, and shut the door.

"You can let him go now Nora."

"Wait, not done yet." After giving him one more squeeze that Jaune was sure would have registered aura loss on his scroll, Nora let go, allowing him to drop the six inches or so to the floor. Then she bounced back over to her own bed, flopping down onto the nest of pillows she'd made against the wall.

That left him standing in the middle of the room with Ren, Pyrrha conspicuous by her absence. He opened to his mouth to speak, to ask where she was, but Ren cut him off.

"Nora, messaged Pyrrha." Jaune wanted to ask when, he was sure he would have noticed it, but didn't get the chance. "Promise you'll wait until she gets back."

His teammate was as serious as Jaune had ever seen him, staring at him, refusing to look away. So, Jaune gave a nod, not trusting himself to speak yet.

That seemed to be enough for him, and Ren collapsed onto his own bed, leaving Jaune standing there feeling alone. This wasn't going anything like he planned. Why weren't Ren and Nora speaking? Where was Pyrrha, why was she out so late? Was she already talking to Ozpin, demanding a new partner? Or to be made leader? If she'd asked he would have gladly given her the position.

The door slammed open, and Jaune stumbled forward at the suddenness of it. Before he could recover, Pyrrha was there. Jaune froze as his partner pulled him into a hug. Nora was a physical person, and he was used to those from her. Pyrrha though was much more reserved, very rarely initiating any kind of physical contact outside of a hand on a shoulder or arm, excepting training of course. She always reminded him of his sister Indigo in that way.

A realization struck him as she clung to him. She hadn't been out talking to Ozpin, she'd been looking for him. Had it really been that easy to expect the worst from her? Was it really such a habit of his? The thought staggered him, and he could feel Pyrrha's grip tighten, refusing to let him fall.

"Jaune, I…" From the reflection in Nora's mirror, he could see her chewing her lip. It was a habit he knew she had, one she only did when facing a particularly tricky question or problem. She paused, taking a deep breath, and relaxed her hold on him, but refused to let go entirely. He didn't make her.

"I'm not very good at explaining this; my peers in Minstrel, they all understood as they had gone through the same things." Here she paused, taking another breath, and he waited to hear what she had to say, needing to know.

"I've been blessed with incredible talents and opportunities, surrounded by praise and adoration. But when you're placed on a pedestal like that, you become separated from the people that put you there in the first place. It becomes almost impossible to form any sort of meaningful relationship, as it always comes back to the fame in some way."

There was frustration in her voice, mixed with the slightest bit of disgust; the same tone he'd heard his sisters use talking about their classmates sometimes.

Here she paused, releasing him from the hug so she could grab his shoulders and face him. He couldn't help but notice they were almost matching in height, putting them eye to eye, and he could see what might have been tears in hers.

"That's what I liked about you Jaune." Her tone picked up, becoming urgent as she released him from the hug so she could grab his shoulders. It put them face to face, and he couldn't help but notice what might have been tears shimmering in her eyes.

"When we met, you didn't even know my name. And when Weiss told you, you still treated me just like anyone else. I choose you as a partner Jaune, I looked specifically for you. You were real in a way that most people had not been around me in ages. And then you introduced me to even more people like that, true people. Without you Jaune, that never would have occurred. I would still be alone, a mountain amidst the hills. You're my friend Jaune, our friend, and nothing will change that; not even you."

There was nothing he could say to that, he found himself utterly speechless, completely lost for words. Not even in his wildest guesses had he expected something like that when he returned to the room.

Stunned, he turned to Ren, who just gave a small shrug and added, "We talked and made her spokesperson."

"Yeah, but she skipped my part," complained Nora as she stood up and struck a dramatic pose like something out of an old cartoon.

"It's been me and Ren verse the world, what with no parents and all. So we're pretty much a package deal, but you acquired our flavor and didn't leave us high and dry."

"I...think I got that?" It was a bit hard to pick apart Nora's mixed metaphors, but Jaune was pretty sure he had the general idea.

Apparently though, Ren wanted no confusion on his part. "What she means is, we're glad to be part of JNPR."

Pyrrha still hadn't fully released him yet, and pulled his attention to her once more.

"Jaune. You are our friend! That is all there is to it. You can keep your secrets, but please know, they will not change what we think of you. You are out friend." Now she let go and sat back down on her bed, leaving him standing there in the middle of the room.

"I-" He stopped, realizing the room was getting blurry again. Reaching up, his fingers felt wet; he was crying.

"Thank you. And, I'm sorry. I know you're my friends. I've known it, each day you proved it. But, there was always a small part of me whispering it was too good to be true. When I heard Yang, though I know she was joking around, it just all came back, the second shoe dropped right on my head, and I freaked." He tried to be as earnest as possible, to put his feelings into his words so they would know and believe.

"Pyrrha told you already, doesn't matter, unless you ever see the people that did it on campus. Then it matters, until we break their legs. You're our friend. Now, I'm tired." Finishing her speech, Nora pulled her blanket over the pillow fort and started humming, making it clear as far as she was concerned the matter was settled.

Ren nodded as he laid back down on his bed. "She's right. You have an early day tomorrow."

"I do?" asked Jaune, but Ren was already asleep, or at least pretending to be.

"Yes. Ren told us. Forgiveness is best served with food. And you must be up early to beat Team RWBY to the punch, as it were." Giving him a final smile, Pyrrha turned off her own light, leaving his lamp the last on.

Thankful he was already in pajamas, and resolving to himself to treat his team better, Jaune flipped off the light. The last thoughts swirling around in his head centered on amazement, that apparently, to friends, that had really been all that needed to be said.

* * *

His hand was trembling. Bewildered, Jaune stared at the limb as if it had betrayed him, and with an effort of will, stilled it. Surely talking to Team RWBY couldn't be that bad, could it? It was only the team with the person he'd insulted most, his crush, and his first friend at Beacon on it. And Blake; her glare was scary.

Suddenly the fact his hand refused to move that final inch to knock on the door made a lot more sense. The box of apology breakfast food was cooling on the ground next to him; his own team literally had his back being in the room behind him, and he still couldn't bring himself to knock.

"I'm telling you, I smell food!" Whatever the reason, his chance to figure it out was taken from him as the door swung open and Yang found herself with his fist an inch from her face. Jaune stared at the loose tank top she wore as sleepwear, and considered maybe coming early in the morning wasn't the best idea.

She blinked once, her lilac eyes still looking sleepy, before her focus switched from the hand by her nose to him with a laser like intensity. "You!"

Sparks flickered to life in Yang's hair, her eyes instantly turning crimson before she grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him into the room. The door slammed shut behind her with an ominous thud; Jaune was now on his own.

"I think you owe someone an apology?" Her sweet tone was completely at odds with the threatening fist held right in front of his face.

Before, anger would have coursed through him at that demand, indignation that she would dare order him to apologize when she had been the person to start everything. But the night of soul searching and acceptance from his team had done wonders, and the anger was crushed by a wave of shame from the fact he got angry in the first place. He knew his cheeks were burning red, hopefully they would think it was just embarrassment from the fact he was dangling from Yang's hand like an errant puppy.

"Yang, I apologize. My words and actions were uncalled for...especially against a friend. I overreacted."

As her hold loosened and he fell back to the floor, easily keeping his balance, he turned to the others. "And I apologize to you all as well, not only for ruining last night, but for not treating you as friends." His hand came up in his nervous habit as he continued, "I mean, I might have called you my friends, but for the most part I haven't really been acting that way, huh? More like acquaintances. And that's not something I want...but I am a bit rusty when it comes to being friends."

"They really messed you up, huh?"

Jaune blinked at the complete non-sequitur, turning back to look at Yang. "Huh?"

"You're even worse at this whole friend's thing then Ruby is." Ignoring Ruby's protest, Yang continued. "I mean, outside the whole knight thing, and the story the first day, what have you really told us? The only person we know less about is Blake."

Her partner glared at her from beneath the bunk, two golden eyes visible in the shadows, and Yang offered an unapologetic grin. "What? It's true. But we've figured out that's just how you are. Jaune, though, buddy, you're great at talking about nothing. It's always training for you, or history. Nothing else. And normally, that would be enough for me to punch you through the door and back to your room….buuuutttt, apologizing like that takes guts. I mean, if I ever messed up, at all, I know I'd be able to do it. But most people? Nah."

Weiss gave a little snort at Yang's declaration of perfection, drawing Jaune's attention to her and making him realize his crush was standing there in a small nightgown. Stopping by before breakfast had to be the best idea ever. Before he could embarrass himself and ruin his apology by staring, she stepped into the bathroom. Ignoring her partner,

Ruby leaped from her bed to land next to Jaune. "What happened to 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet?" she demanded, looking up at him.

"I...well...I'm trying to figure that out myself. I started out like that, but ended up falling back into my old habits pretty quickly after those first days….and well… the rest is probably told better over breakfast, so are you interested? It won't turn out like last night, I promise." He held up his hand in the universally recognized gesture of the Survival Scouts, the group any Remnant kid could probably say they'd been in at one point.

"The food Yang smelled is the final box; the rest is in the lounge with my team. I have pancakes with whip cream and strawberries."

Seeing Ruby's eyes widen, he knew he had her there. As much as she loved cookies, he knew her real favorite food. Maybe he wasn't a completely bad friend after all.

"And bacon and sausage, plus fresh orange juice," he added, hoping to temp Blake and Yang.

"Deal," answered Ruby for her team before he could add anything else.

"What about Pumpkin Pete's?" demanded Yang, a small smile tugging up the corner of her mouth?

Jaune answered with one of his own, feeling a weight lift off his chest. "The spokeswoman is a friend, I'm not supposed to do this, but I think I can pull some strings and arrange something."

'Well, at least Weiss won't be able to complain it was junk food that tempted our leader this time; now it's a balanced nutritional breakfast," remarked Blake as she stretched and slowly set about getting ready.

* * *

The breakfast was remarkably quiet as everyone ate; only small idle chit chat focused mainly on classes. He'd stuck to things he knew how to make, so everything came out decently, even if it might not compare completely with what Beacon offered students. But he hoped the thought counted.

His own team was content to wait for him to bring up the topic; but Yang wasn't as patient. He knew that was just how she was.

"So, you bribed us with food, Nora's distracted with the pancakes, so spill!" Yang spooned the last of the cut strawberries onto her plate and began to pick at them as she made her demand.

From the corner of his eye, Jaune noticed it almost looked like Pyrrha was going to protest, so he pushed his own plate aside and leaned back. He'd been thinking about what to say all morning, he could do this.

"Well, the first thing you should know is I have seven older sisters-"

"What, seven? How'd you survive? I just had Yang, and I barely made it!" Ruby was looking at him like he was some kind of miracle; and he froze. Then he saw the glint in her eye and realized what her goal was.

"Oh come on, you know you love me! I'm a Yangnificint big sister." Yang's cheesy grin showed she clearly meant every word of that horrible butchering of the language, and expected some laughs for the mutilation.

Instead, Ruby took it on herself to punish her sister and teammate. "Just for that, I'm stealing your strawberries!" Feeling completely justified with her theft, Ruby quickly pilfered the delicious fruit off Yang's plate, leaving only a few quickly fading rose petals, which were not the red plant Yang had been hoping to eat.

Shaking his head at their antics, and suppressing the pang of homesickness for his own sisters, Jaune began again. "Anyway, they're all accomplished Huntresses. And we also all got training before the academies."

He was proud of the fact he managed to get through saying that with only the slightest hitch in his voice as he said 'training.' He could see most of the others nodding along at that, with how good they were he assumed they had to have extra training on the side. But it wasn't that which worried him, it was the fact he thought Ren might have noticed his slip, and he wasn't ready to talk about that, not yet.

But the boy didn't say anything about it, so he immediately pushed on with the story. "It made us good, very good, and for my sisters, that meant best in their year at Signal, and then at Beacon. But that didn't mean they were better than the rest of the years, and upper year students weren't exactly excited about strong first years showing up. I never knew what Bianca went through, I never had the courage to ask, but when Violet's turn came, Bianca was there for her. And it continued all the way down the line, until you get to me, the one kid who decided not to go to Signal. They thought I'd be fine, even if one of them wasn't there, and I wasn't going to tell them otherwise, not when Olivia managed to get her dream and transfer to Atlas."

A tapping sound filled the room as he paused to take a breath, and he realized he was drumming his fingers on the table. He stopped, but knew it was useless; talking with his hands was what he did, and they'd start doing something the moment he stopped actually thinking about it.

"I don't know what really happened at that point...and I think that's what really hurt the most; that none of my old friends actually bothered telling me. Was it hearing what my sisters had done from their own siblings? The fact I beat them at the spars we had on their first break? I don't know...Just, that's when the jokes and comments started. And by the time what would have been my first year at Signal ended, there wasn't anybody there I bothered to talk to anymore."

Not that it stopped them from sending the messages. And there were only so many places in Vale's residential district he could go, places they knew about. Still, they were cautious enough to know not to mess with him in the Library, Ms. Mauve had drummed that lesson into them.

Realizing there wasn't exactly anything else he could add, he just gave a shrug and looked around the table. Weiss was looking at him with what he knew was sympathy, he'd seen it often enough on Ms. Mauve's face to recognize it. It was the nod of understanding that she gave which threw him. She was rich, well known, and had a singing career, why would she understand? Before his mouth could say something stupid, his brain caught up, reminding him of the conversation with Pyrrha the night before. Fame didn't mean friends. The fact his partner had a similar look on her face just drove the point home.

Thankfully, Nora was never one to let a bad mood simmer, and her pancake distractions were gone.

"It's Saturday! We're here and had pancakes! It's happy time, by order of the Queen! And your beautiful Queen will lead by example!"

Jumping up and balancing precariously on her chair, Nora pretended to ride a horse. "There I was, going after a Tyrant Scale that had kidnapped Prince Ren…"

* * *

 **Scholar's Note: Survival Scouts**

It's funny how with everything that changes, so much stays the same. My father had complete control over my education, just like hunters and their kids now. But he pumped me full of all the history I could stomach instead of how best to kill a Nevermore mid-flight. I don't think he ever actually fought after he mustered out; too busy digging.

Still, even he couldn't deny putting me in the Survival Scouts, no matter how much he looked down on the violence. It was them who first taught me how to escape a Beowolf, and what to do if there ever was a Wall Breach. I think it was that touch of the world outside the walls, the glimpse that history could be more than just old books and government approved dig sites that put me on the path.

Now here I am a war and years later, and the Scouts think I'm the one that needs help, like I'm old. Just because I've stepped foot outside these walls ad my face shows it is no reason to assume I'm incapable of taking care of myself. The way the faculty gave me an assistant shows they think the same thing, and the lot of them haven't been outside the wall before. Hah, the day I can't carry my own research around is the day they can bury me. I've still got another expedition or two in me. Marcus was the only one worth anything here; maybe it's time to head out again.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

In case anyone noticed, I did have Jaune call his ancestor 'grandfather.' Figure it's just shortening it from habit, after all, taking on too many greats is annoying to say. There is something funny about the timeline they present in canon, but that's a discussion for another time

Hoped you liked the chapter.

Once again, thanks to College Fool.

Also, a shout out to 'The Games We Play' which is probably the best RWBY story I've ever read, a true epic, and finished on December 31. The first chapters are here on Fanfiction, and the entire thing is on SpaceBattles.


	9. Chapter 9

"Hey, want to help me paint my locker?" Jaune asked the question in one rush of words. The plan was it would make it nearly impossible for him to chicken out partway through. In actuality, it just made him hard to understand.

Rather unsurprisingly, Nora was the first to understand. He'd come to know she was more than fluent in babble, ramble, excitement, food-in-mouth, and blurting. "I still have the paintball gun and some leftover paint!"

"Nora, I believe he has his own plan," offered Ren as he set down his book and cut off Nora before she could offer any more ideas.

Jaune was grateful for that. He'd seen the multi colored monstrosity that Nora called decorating. Supplies for painting the storage lockers were free for students, part of Beacon's ongoing commitment to the ideals of the Color Revolution, and Nora had taken advantage of that to requisition paintballs. She'd already had the gun. Now her door was a splotchy mess of various pinks and oranges, with just a tad of green 'for subtle shading' as she'd explained. And the outside could almost be considered normal compared to the inside, which she'd filled with nothing but high explosives, pillows, and her strategic syrup reserve.

Finishing marking a section of her work, Pyrrha looked up. "What did you have in mind Jaune?"

"Well, I was thinking azure a sword per pale argent hilted or between a crown in chief and two fleurs-de-lys of the last." And he hadn't meant to say it like that; but old habits were hard to break. For a second he almost flinched, remembering the last time he'd spoken like that, but he pushed the reflex down. He was with friends now.

Nora perked up, looking interested as she stared at him and reached out to feel his forehead. "Are speaking in tongues Jaune? Or are you sick? Oh! That was code, you're a spy, aren't you!"

"No, he's not a spy Nora. That was...herald?" Ren looked at Jaune for confirmation.

He could only shrug though. "That's what I called it, or heraldese when I was younger."

"What is it?" asked Pyrrha, curiosity tingeing her voice.

"It's the language and rules they used to use for family designs, the predecessors to the symbols many hunters use." Ren paused, eyes closed as he tried to dredge up a half remembered book from his research project into family histories. A book he'd quickly discarded when it was clear it didn't have the answers he needed.

"Or is gold. Azure would be blue, and argent silver. And the fleurs are flowers? The sword is obvious. I don't know how to pull it together though."

Jaune found himself staring open mouthed at his teammate, and it was only Nora poking him on the shoulder that shook him out of hit. "Wow, I'm impressed. I mean, really. Most people wouldn't know any of that."

Ren could only shrug, not feeling the need to reveal the hours he'd spent pouring over such books trying to find clues.

"Anyway, what it means is 'A blue shield, with a silver sword point up in two gold arcs, with a gold lily on each side. Here's a picture." Tapping his scroll, he brought up the picture before flipping it over for them to see.

As they examined the design, he explained, "It was my family's symbol from my father's side. It was meant to symbolize our family's service to the crown, and to the land. My grandfather changed it to what you've seen on Crocea Mors after the war."

"Pretty. But it could use more pink. I'll get the paint!" And then Nora was gone before they could stop her.

"She doesn't know where your locker is, does she?" asked Pyrrha as they stared at where Nora had been. Somehow she'd managed to grab all her stuff before running off as well.

There was something in Pyrrha's tone, an almost studied indifference, and if he hadn't been super attentive to his team since the fight, Jaune would have missed it. Still, just because he knew it was there didn't mean he knew what it meant, so he answered as truthfully as he could and prayed it worked. "No, she doesn't. At least, I don't think so. I've never told her."

"Oh, well, Ren, would you mind getting her?"

Ren nodded in agreement to Pyrrha's request, already scooping his things together. "She'd ignore a scroll message and probably end up painting someone else's door when she couldn't find us."

"It's number 636." Giving Jaune and Pyrrha a final nod, Ren slipped out, leaving them alone.

As Jaune started to gather his own things, he was stopped as Pyrrha placed a gentle hand on his arm. "I appreciate you doing this Jaune. But you don't have to if you don't want to."

He bit down the urge to just shrug and leave it be, and instead tried to give an honest answer. "It's not easy...but I want to, to show you all your trust isn't wrong. It's a small thing, but I figure if I do enough of them, it'll become second nature for me again, like it used to be. And besides," he offered her a smile, "I told Nora. There's no way nothing's getting painted now. If I tried to stop, she'd probably paint me instead."

Pyrrha giggled as she grabbed her own bag. "True. But my locker is still blank."

"You volunteering? There's always next weekend after our joint practice."

* * *

Flush with success from painting his locker, Jaune ambled down the hall back towards paint storage, precariously balancing the supplies. Sure, the sword wasn't perfectly straight, and there was a suspicious pink blotch in the corner of the door, but it turned out alright. Maybe if Pyrrha hadn't been joking they'd be decorating her locker next week.

He almost dropped the paint cans as a cry came from around the corner, interrupting his thoughts. Stopping, he took a second to readjust his grip and balance the wavering stack as laughter floated down the corridor. The laughter killed any need he felt to check it out, it had probably just been someone playing a prank on a teammate or something.

Instead of the two laughing teammates he expected to find when he rounded the corner, he instead found a hallway strewn with papers and boxes. A glimpse of silver and black caught his eye, but whoever it was turned the corner and disappeared, leaving him standing there in front of the mess, alone with the student sitting in the middle of it all.

Carefully putting the paint cans down out of the way, Jaune started to collect the papers from his end. Just glancing at them he could tell they were filled with some kind of weapons schematics, but the specifics were beyond him. The boxes he left alone; no telling what was in them.

With a few taps on the nearby wall, he straightened the stack, even if it was hopelessly out of order, and presented it to the other boy. Raccoon ears twitched as the boy looked up at him from pawing through a box of what looked like power converters and mecha-shift mechanisms.

"Hey, I'm Jaune Arc."

Neither of them saw the black shadow observing them from further down the corridor.

* * *

The mace swung towards him, red dust glinting malevolently in its crown. Tapping it with his shield, Jaune let the blow slide by with the slight deflection, confident Cardin wouldn't be able to adjust in time. Then he stepped forward, his blade whistling through the air. It slid by just in front of Cardin's face, missing, and the boy turned, using the momentum from his earlier swing to step back and get some room.

Jaune let him, taking his own step back and trying to gauge the distance as Cardin began to circle around him. He peered at his opponent over the corner of the shield, keeping it tilted so the curve of the shield and the edge protected the entire side he was facing the mace wielder with. His sword was held it what would almost seem a mockery of Cardin's own stance, with the blade above his shoulder, the pommel pointed at the larger boy.

But Cardin could see what he was doing, and internally scoffed. Jaune's entire stance was defensive, with the sword's pommel covering the area the shield didn't. And defense won no fights. This entire fight the blond had barely managed to scratch him. Granted, he hadn't managed to land a decisive blow either, but with his mace it would only take one, and the initiative was his. He'd crack that guard wide open. Stepping forward he swung in a downward wrap that would either blow through Jaune's guard, or force him to intercept and open him up for a kick and follow through strike.

His plan was simple, and blindingly choreographed. All Jaune had to do was step into the blow to the side where a kick attempt would put Cardin off balance, then strike at his open arm, using his own momentum against him to push him out of stance, leaving him unguarded for the final blow to the neck.

Air swished again as his sword hit the wrong part of Cardin's arm, the weak part of the sword not having enough force behind it to knock the blow aside as it connect with the armor on his forearm instead of the joint. Instead, Cardin followed through, kicking out at Jaune's leg as the mace came swinging back. Even messing up his own part, Jaune knew his plan, and hopped to the side, forcing Cardin to regain his balance or risk toppling over. Ignoring the sword in his hand, Jaune instead bashed Cardin in the face with the shield twice in rapid succession, and then hopped backward to regain distance.

But apparently Cardin had enough and bulled forward, triggering his mace's explosive ability, ignoring the damage it did to his own aura meter. Not expecting the rather suicidal move, as it had put Cardin deeply into the yellow, Jaune was blown backward, still holding onto his weapons as he crashed into the floor. His opponent had been prepared for the blow, and was on him almost immediately, not giving him time to raise his shield. It didn't matter, at the angle he was at the shield would have just been smashed back into him. So he took a different option.

As Cardin swung down in a straight and telegraphed strike, Jaune kicked up with his legs, catching the boy's arm with his feet and allowing the superior muscles of his legs to halt the blow. Cardin's grip on the mace slipped at the unexpected impact on his arms, and it sailed forward, nearly nailing Ms. Goodwitch.

"That's enough boys," she snapped, a quick gesture from her riding crop catching the flying mace and leaving it to hover next to her. "I'm calling the match a draw."

With that the lights came back on, exposing the watching class around the arena. "Perhaps next time you would rather fight unarmed from the beginning?" she asked archly, crop tapping against her free hand rhythmically as she stared at them.

Neither boy responded and she continued, "Remember your weapons are your lifelines; do not lose them. I expect to see improvement in your next matches. Now, Rocky and Bullwinkle, step forward. You have two minutes to prepare for your fight."

Retrieving his blade, Jaune sheathed it and trudged back to the seats, ignoring the two partners walking towards the arena.

"What happened up there?" whispered Yang as he slid into his seat. "You should have creamed him."

"I made a mistake, I don't wanna talk about it." Jaune was pouting, there was no other word for it, and seeing a six foot blonde in metal armor pouting was a funny sight, enough to make Pyrrha giggle in her seat next to him.

"Well, don't let it happen again." Yang punched him in the shoulder, a small smirk on her face. "You beat me, I can't have random schmucks like Cardin beating you and ruining my reputation by association."

Jaune just sunk further into his seat as the two Faunus upfront started their battle. Pyrrha's giggles died away as she realized Yang's attempts at lightening the mood hadn't gotten any reaction from her partner. Surely the first loss he had to someone outside their group couldn't be bothering him that much, could it? The buzzer marking the start of the match sounded, and the lights dimmed, cutting off any chance she had to ask him. She'd have to wait until lunch to see what was really bothering him.

* * *

"She's been having this dream for nearly a month now," explained Ren as he once again sipped his tea. "At least it no longer has Tyrant Scales in it."

"Jaune, are you sure you're okay?'" asked Pyrrha from her seat next to him. Even with the class over with, and the rest of the day free, he still seemed in a funk to her.

"Yeah, you didn't even complain about the food once," added in Ruby as she finished off her plate of cookies. Weiss eyed the crumbs remaining in disdain, while inside she was secretly wondering just how Ruby could eat all that sugar and yet not gain an inch. It had to be a secret part of her semblance; that was the only rational explanation. And she wasn't jealous in the least. She wasn't.

"Hey," protested Jaune, sitting up from his slouch and pushing aside his half eaten meal. "I don't always complain about the food."

Blake didn't even bother looking up from her tuna salad as she cut down his protest without mercy. "You do when it's the meatloaf surprise."

"Huh? I hate that stuff." The others all pointed to his plate, and the picked apart red mess sitting on it.

"Oh. What do you know, it's the meatloaf surprise." Jaune pointed his finger at them all. "Mark my words, one day I'll get my dad to send me one of his correct recipes, and then you'll see. Or better yet, I'll get him to come here and cook for us. We could afford to pay for the mission right?"

"But until then, why don't you tell us what's wrong? Was it losing to Cardin? Cause you seem a little...not okay." Ruby faltered at the end, not quite sure how to describe his mope without calling it a mope. She'd learned boys really hated being accused of moping. Or pouting, that was just as bad.

"We can break his legs for you if it'll cheer you up," offered Nora with a grin.

"Has she ever…" Yang gestured from Nora to her own knees and silently mimed smashing one with her fist.

Ren just shook his head. "No, not yet, but I get the feeling it's one of those things on the hammer list she mentioned."

"Anyway! Jaune was just about to tell us what's wrong. Isn't that right Jaune?" Pyrrha poked him with her fork as a gentle encouragement, and a reminder she was within grabbing distance if tried to make a break for it. She was honestly concerned, she didn't want to see him backslide to his more hermit ways, not when he seemed he was making an effort to open up beyond the basics. He'd even willingly given her his weapon earlier. Surely telling her what was bothering him couldn't be that large of an issue.

Holding up his hands in surrender, Jaune let out a small sigh. He was trying to be a good friend now, and he knew that meant talking about problems, even if he really didn't want to. Still, it was nice to know they cared, which was why he was even open to talking about his problem in the first place. That, and he got the feeling they wouldn't drop it unless he explicitly asked them to.

"Right Pyrrha, I was-"

"Ow! That hurts!" The laughing from the other table had been easy enough to ignore, the cafeteria was always filled with students, even if these particular ones sounded like hyenas. The cry of pain on the other hand, was not, and their whole group turned its attentions from Jaune to their neighbors. "Please, stop…"

"I told you they were real." Cardin continued to tug on the poor rabbit faunus's ear, ignoring her plea.

"What a freak," jeered another of his friends and teammates. The fact they were the only real people to hang around them aside from the occasional suck up went without saying.

"Atrocious. I really can't stand people like them. Jaune, you were saying…." Pyrrha trailed off as she turned back around, only to see Jaune had disappeared.

"Jaune?" For being rather slow most of the time, he was rather good at disappearing, even if he didn't hold a candle to Ren.

Cardin went to pull on her other ear, debating forcing her into a kiss. After all, she wasn't that ugly for an animal. But his hand refused to move. "Wha?"

"Let her go." Cardin turned to see a hand had grabbed his wrist, and for a second he was worried. Had some bleeding heart upper year finally got sick of him putting the animals in their place?

But the sight of whose hand it was filled him with relief and some glee. What was the saying, two Nevermore with one rock? "Oh, it's just you Jauney boy. Why don't you make me?"

Then the grip on his hand tightened, and Cardin would later swear he heard his bones creak. Involuntarily he felt his fingers loosen, and the girl's ear slip through his grasp.

"You're a disgrace to the Imperial Eagle you wear Cardin." Loosening his grip on the bully's wrist, who pulled free with a sharp tug, Jaune turned to the girl. "Are you okay?"

With a sharp little nod and downcast eyes the girl quickly began to walk away. Jaune turned to follow, but a hand on grabbed his arm.

"Where do you think you're going Jauney-boy? We're not finished yet. You don't get to insult me and my family like that and just stroll away." He could feel the boy squeezing down, trying to replicate Jaune's own intimidation trick, but he ignored it to face him. He'd had far worse done before and it would have to be broken for him to start paying attention.

"I'm leaving. We're done here." And he really was. If Cardin would drop it, he'd do the same. The girl was...not fine, but not being hurt either. It was her friends' job from here; with his social skills he'd probably end up insulting her by mistake like he'd done in the past with others.

"What, playing hero to one of them made you bold? Get your rocks off on helping animals like that? Well, we're not done until I say we're done." Seeing squeezing had failed, Cardin tried to yank Jaune over to him, but a quick application of aura and he didn't budge. Instead Cardin was half pulled from his seat, and quickly stood the rest of the way to make it seem like it was his idea to stand in the first place. He loomed over the smaller Jaune, trying to use those extra inches of height to his advantage. But the intimidation tactic failed.

"Are you done yet?" asked Jaune calmly. The boy in front of him disgusted him, but that didn't mean he would pick a fight if he could solve it peacefully. No matter how much he wanted to punch him.

Cardin let out a snort at that. Like he'd let Jaune walk away from this without a bruise or two, his reputation would be in tatters if he did. "No, what'cha gonna do about it? You couldn't touch me earlier in the fight except for that lucky shot."

Something flashed across Jaune's eyes, too quick to make out before the calm mask was back. He'd planned to let it go, to let the bully walk away. But his skills had been insulted, and he wouldn't let that stand, he couldn't let that stand. Not after everything he'd sacrificed, everything he'd been through to get them. The tie, the loss, from earlier was still bothering him, an itch he couldn't scratch. But here was his chance to wipe the board clean, and maybe he wouldn't have any dreams tonight if he did.

The fact this was the first time Cardin had escalated to grabbing another student like that was just icing on the cake. It was time for a lesson, to teach the bully a thing or two and see if it stuck better than Oobleck's history lessons did. "You're an idiot Cardin. The only reason I even came close to losing to you was because I used a different practice sword. If you actually bothered to pay attention, you'd have seen all my blows were off by two inches. Then again, with your spatial awareness I'm surprised you don't hit yourself."

"Why you-" Cardin balled his fists and took a step forward, but stopped as Dove placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey Jaune. Long time no see."

"Dove," Jaune gave the other boy a small nod.

Cardin turned to his teammate in surprise. "You know him?"

Jaune had known Dove. Or thought he did. Then came Signal, and all those years of friendship were gone. He'd recognized him at the Team Ceremony, and Dove had surely recognized him as well. But they'd been ignoring each other; he thought they'd had an unspoken understanding to leave each other alone. Apparently that didn't extend to Jaune confronting his team leader in front of the other boy though.

"Yeah. We're old friends. So, how have you been Jaune, still tilting at windmills?" asked Dove, the tone friendly and the words anything but.

Jaune tried to think of something to say, some cutting comment. Maybe something about Dove's old teddy bear? But he couldn't seem to actually talk. Nothing wanted to come out, and he found himself clamming up.

Thankfully, Cardin's big mouth came in handy for once, he was more than happy to fill the silence. "Hah, good one Dove. I guess his aim was always that bad? Maybe he should give up on using a sword and just stick with a board. That seems to be about the only way he can hit anything anyway."

Suddenly Jaune knew what to say, it was so much easier to focus on Cardin then Dove. "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is then? It's Friday, we're free now. A duel between you and me, with no Goodwitch to stop it."

The laughter stopped, all of Team CRDL now looking at Jaune as he continued. "I win, you stop picking on everyone."

This could be better than he hoped if the bully took the bait. He doubted he'd keep his word if he lost, but then again everyone deserved to have their word taken as honorable the first time. And hitting him would feel really, really good. It was a chance to release some of the frustration he still felt from their earlier match and his own stupid mistakes.

Cardin's eyes glinted maliciously. This was even better than if he'd planned it out. A chance to wail on the boy and put the fear of CRDL in him without that prissy Goodwitch stopping him. "And if I win...hmmm. Maybe I'll ask for that tin can of yours...then again it'll only be good for scrap metal when I'm done with you."

He waited for his friends' laughter to die down before continuing, "So, if I win, you can do our homework for the rest of the semester."

Grabbing Cardin's outstretched hand, Jaune shook it firmly. "Deal. Now, are you ready? No reason to wait."

"And here I thought you'd want to hold off the beating for a while. Still, if you're ready to spend the rest of today bruised and bleeding, fine by me." Neither of the two noticed the rather worried look on Dove's face before he smothered it.

The group started to walk toward the arenas, CRDL surrounding Jaune so he wouldn't get the chance to leave. Their section of the cafeteria was near silent in their wake as they disappeared through the doors. The remaining members of RWBY and JNPR all looked at each other before hurriedly scrambling from their seats and heading for the same doors, letting them swing shut behind them.

Then Nora ran back in, grabbing a nearby bowl of chips, and dashed out again.

"Really Nora?" Ren's voice drifted in from the still swinging doors.

"What? Every good show should have snacks, even if they aren't pancakes. And this is going to be a good show." Her words started off a mad scramble as the rest of the nearby students raced to follow; any fight like that should prove decent entertainment.

* * *

"Are you sure Jaune?" Pyrrha watched as her partner checked his gear, the rocket locker open before him.

"Yeah Pyrrha, I'm sure." Jaune casually pulled the one-handed part of Durandal free from its sheath, and swung it around for a second before letting the blade fall to his side.

As he went to put the other half of Durandal back in the locker he hesitated, and instead pulled it back and nudged the door closed.

Pyrrha blinked in surprise as he held the sheath-shield out to her. "Would you watch this for me please?"

Speechless, she gently grabbed the weapon, cradling it in her arms as they began to walk towards the arena together. As the doors to the arena approached she gathered her thoughts again.

"But Jaune, this seems a little... unwise." She gestured to what he was wearing, which was nothing more than his normal school uniform. No armor, only half his weapon, and he was preparing to go into battle with the same person who had tied him that very morning. She couldn't help but think there was something more going on, something related to what had happened earlier. She had no doubt he could win, but the problem seemed deeper than a simple tie earlier would warrant, or even the bullying with his own past on the issue. The problem was how to bring it up to him without seeming like she was prying?

Stopping just outside the door, Jaune placed a hand on Pyrrha's shoulder. "Pyrrha, could you take on Cardin with just Milo?"

"Of course." That wasn't even in question, she'd done far more impressive things in the tournaments before then take on one egotistical bully only half armed. She knew she could handle him with just Akoúo̱ or even unarmed. And maybe she would if she was ever paired with him in combat class, just to teach him a proper lesson.

"Then I ask you to trust me to do the same. I know what I'm doing." Letting go, he gave her a smile before pushing open the doors.

She wanted to say she did, that it wasn't the match that bothered her, but his mood. But she kept silent. She trusted him, and that was all she could do right now. It would give her a chance to show him that friendship, and trust, went both ways. And maybe he'd be in the mood to talk after his win. "All right Jaune. But know if you do lose, we'll be there to help you with the work."

A mischievous spark appeared in her green eyes. "After teasing you about it of course." Not that she thought he would, but maybe the joke would help his mood.

"Of course." Pulling up Durandal to his favored stance, blade parallel to the floor, above his shoulder with the pommel pointed forward, he stepped out into the arena.

Cardin wasn't out yet, and it gave him a moment to look around. "Go Jaune!" "You can do it" "Kick his as-" "Yang! Language!"

The fact team RWBY and his own team were there to cheer for him was kind of expected, they'd been doing a lot of things together. It was still nice to know that other people supported him. The fact there were what seemed to be a large portion of the rest of the first years there to watch as well was not expected. He even thought he saw some of his ex-friends in the crowd, but he ignored them. It didn't make a difference.

"Really? That's all you're wearing. I'm almost insulted. Still, seeing you squashed like a bug when I win will be even better than denting your tin can." Cardin stepped out of the other side's changing room and approached the center, mace in hand. Tin can sounded completely different coming from Cardin compared to Yang, and Jaune decided he didn't like it.

"He'll start the fight, standard countdown." Jaune pointed to a random student in the crowd of watchers.

"Me?" The student pointed a finger at himself.

The audience turned to look at him, before turning back to face Jaune. "Yeah, I don't know you, and Cardin doesn't know you. You're neutral."

"I'm in two of your classes, how don't you know my name by now?" protested the student, even as he pulled out his own scroll and synced it to the arena. Above, the screens lit up, showing Jaune and Cardin's aura meters.

"Cause you're not important," snapped Cardin as he stepped into the starting area, while across from him Jaune did the same.

"It's Griffin," muttered the student as he petulantly poked the start button and slumped in his seat.

"3." Jaune sunk into his ready stance, left side of his body angled towards Cardin.

"2." Knees bent as he settled down, lowering the center of gravity and making his stance stronger.

"1." He could see Cardin's hands flexing on the handle of the mace.

"Begin!" announced the robot referee.

Jaune uncoiled like a spring, taking one large step forward and whipping his sword around. The blade of Durandal sliced through the air as he moved his arm forward, twisting his hand as he did. His father had always described the hand movement as serving a bowl of soup, but until he'd actually seen the blow in slow motion he hadn't really gotten it. But years of practice had paid off, and the motion was perfectly natural now. He'd judged the distance perfectly, and backed not only by his strength, but by physics, the blade smashed into Cardin's head as it whipped around.

"Match over." The robotic voice announced as Cardin's aura meter flashed red. The boy remained standing for a minute, not evening having had the chance to move from his starting position, before silently crumpling to the ground. The sound of his mace clattering to the ground echoed in the silent arena, and while it certainly wasn't a pin, everyone heard it.

Jaune whipped Durandal back into his ready position, completing the well-practiced movement, but let it rest on his shoulder instead of up in the guard position. Turning, he looked at the rest of Team CRDL. Dove looked like he was going to say something, but Jaune cut him off.

"He should be fine, I twisted to hit with the blunt side, but it's up to you to get him to the infirmary." Duty to his fallen opponent done, and feeling mildly better, he started to walk over to where Pyrrha was sitting with his scabbard, then paused.

"And thank you Griffin." The crowd was beginning to stir, cheers for him and jeers at Cardin for going down in one hit coming in equal measure. Jaune looked for where Griffin had been. He couldn't spot the boy, and so turned towards his friends.

They were louder than the rest and already making their way down from the seats. Pyrrha was in the lead, and she handed the other half of Durandal back to him.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Nora beat her to it. "That. Was. Awesome! Maybe even better then breaking his legs!"

Jaune gave an embarrassed shrug at the attention as he slipped Durandal back into its other half. Pyrrha just gave him a wide smile and a nod as the rest of their friends swarmed around him. Nora's steady stream of chatter was quickly joined by Ruby's, and he could barely make out what they were staying between the two and Yang's congratulatory slaps on the back.

Interrupting the girls, he said "Well, I told him, distance is everything. If I hadn't been using a new sword this morning, he never would have touched me. I'm just mad I screwed up like I did, with underestimating the change then overcompensating."

Suddenly his anger made a lot more sense to Pyrrha. She could understand his frustration at that. Training with Milo, a triple shifting weapon with two melee forms of differing lengths, meant she knew exactly how important it was to know the distance a strike could reach. Her whole fighting style was based around that knowledge, and the ability to quickly shift Milo to take advantage of it. In fact, she'd almost lost her Fourth Championship when a sudden growth spurt had thrown her off. If she didn't have her Semblance to help her know the distance intuitively, Alexander might have gotten her.

"But what about Dove?" The group quieted and turned towards Blake, inquisitive looks on their faces.

She squirmed at the attention, stepping back slightly. "I heard what he said to you. He was one of your friends?"

"Oh, so I can break HIS legs then?" asked Nora eagerly, already drawing Magnhild. Dove must have somehow sensed her attention, as he looked over from where he'd been helping up his teammate. Nora swung her hammer a few times, and he gulped nervously, pulling Cardin to his feet and quickly starting for the exit.

"You heard that?" asked Jaune. He thought they'd been rather quiet when they'd been talking. Or at least Dove had been; Cardin was naturally loud.

Blake gave a small shrug. "We were kind of watching you confront them."

"Oh. Well, it doesn't matter. He doesn't matter."

"But Jaune-" Pyrrha started to protest. One of the ones who had hurt him was here, they should be doing something about it.

"No, it's done with," he interrupted her. "If they try something again I'll let one of you handle it if you want, but until then the worst thing I can do to him now is go back to ignoring him. They're all beneath me."

Pausing, he looked around to make sure no one else was nearby. The watchers had all left, leaving them alone, and so he continued. "Besides, I don't think I can handle it right now. I kinda froze up when he insulted me. So, just leave it alone for now, okay?"

There was an awkward silence for a second after Jaune's plea, before Ruby broke it. "Soooo, why were you using a different sword? Did something happen to Durandal? Is it broken?"

Happy for the topic change, Jaune gladly held out Durandal for her to examine it, though he didn't actually let go of the sword.

"No, it's fine. I just try to spar with different swords in our combat class, specifically to get used to fighting with varying lengths and weights. I'd made a new one, and wanted to try it. I thought I'd finally got the hang of it, but I was wrong," he finished with a mutter. It was a sore point with him; after all the training he'd done he knew he should be able to instantly adapt to a new weapon as basic as a sword, but he'd still managed to screw it up.

"Well we did know about your other swords, I do not believe we've ever seen you use them in our practices. I'd like to think I would have noticed that." What Pyrrha didn't say was she was sure her semblance would have told her if he'd changed swords in one of their bouts. Why would he only use them in the combat class, and not any of their team spars if it was so important to him?

"You're all good enough that I wasn't going to give myself another handicap; can't have your leader looking weak after all," Jaune finished with a grin, trying to recover his good mood. "Plus this will mess with anyone trying to figure out my style in class. I was even thinking about switching to an axe for the next match, or using my left hand."

Ren arched an eyebrow. "Another handicap?"

That had come out wrong, and he hurried to reassure Ren that hadn't been what he meant, holding his hands out apologetically. "Hey, not insulting you, seriously. Just, we're the cream of the crop compared to the rest of the first years. Fighting them, I've got to do something to get some actual practice. With you all it's different, I don't need to pull any punches to get a workout. Besides my semblance."

"What about your Semblance?" asked Ruby?

Jaune gave a shrug. "Just, you've never seen my semblance have you? Just like I haven't seen most of my team's yet. None of us have told each other, except Nora, so we're all handicapped. That's all I meant."

Weiss blinked in surprise as she realized what he had said was true. Did he intentionally arrange it that way, to keep his own team's capabilities secret? "You know, he has a point. They know all of our semblances, but we don't know theirs."

"It's cause Ren's a ninja," Nora stage whispered. "His aura of secrecy masks us all."

"So, what is it?" asked Yang. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours," she added in a teasing tone.

"Sorry, the time for questions is past." Jaune lowered his voice, peering at them each in turn with squinting eyes.

"One day, when you least expect it, I shall pull out my sneaky semblance and secretly set-up the spar, the spar to decide them all. One by one you will fall, until eventually I shall rule all! Muahahahahaha! Ouch!"

Jaune rubbed the back of his head where Yang had slapped him. "What was that for?"

"You didn't answer my question. And you're scaring Ruby." She gave a bright smile as she tacked on that last bit, like it excused her actions. Jaune wasn't buying it for a minute.

"Hey!" And apparently Ruby wasn't either.

"She doesn't look scared to me." Jaune made a show of peering down at her, and she countered by sticking out her tongue at him, then her sister.

"Traumatized her for life," continued Yang, pretending she hadn't heard the two. "Wilting back from you in fear like a poor rose."

Ruby paused, about ready to yell at Yang again, then reconsidered. "Actually, yeah. Yes you did Jaune. And it's your job to take responsibility, so you know what will make me feel better?"

"Cookies?" guessed Jaune. "I can have my minion, I mean teammate, make some." Behind him, Ren groaned, anticipating having to start baking again.

"Well, those too. But you need to show me your sword." You could have heard a pin drop, or Cardin's mace, as everyone paused, considering the fact the she was already standing next to the sheathed Durandal.

"Wouldn't that just traumatize you even more?" offered Weiss archly, a small smile playing across her lips taking the edge off her words.

"Hey!" Now it was Jaune's turn to be affronted, even as Yang offered the pale girl a high five.

"Not Durandal, I mean the sword you used earlier today. You said you made it right? I want to see it," Ruby demanded, poking Jaune in the chest. "And the axe you mentioned."

Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly, forcing himself to relax. To his surprise, he didn't actually have the urge to deny her request. Maybe he was getting better with the sharing thing. Or possibly it was just Ruby; he didn't think she had a mean bone in her body. "Alright. It's about time for me to do my workout, so I have to stop by the storage units. Come on. And let me guess, the rest of you are coming as well?"

"Eh, nothing better to do," offered Yang with a shrug.

"And you?" asked Jaune, turning to his own team, but already guessing their answer.

Ren hiked his thumb at Yang. "What she said. And it's almost time for my own practice anyway; yours is on the way."

* * *

 **Scholar's Note: Heraldry**

Despite what most people think, there was actually more to coats of arms then just sticking a bunch of colors and animals together. There was a science to it, and most kingdoms practiced the art, and were fluent in their own versions and their enemies. You needed to know who was worth capturing after all. It never really took off to the same extent in Mantle and Mistral as it did in Vacuo and Vale.

Eventually it died out for the most part and by just before the Great War the only one's left using it were in one group or another, all serving the various kings and queens.

And the Great War shifted everything about. The last of the Imperial Order fled Mistral, making its way to Vale as the Great Families consolidated power in their homeland. The remains of the knightly orders in Vale, more of a prestige award then any real connection to the original foundings, split as brother fought brother, either staying loyal to king and crown, or fighting for the people they originally swore to protect. Any who truly believed in them either died in the fighting, or decided to let the ghosts of the past finally rest.

But they've been making a comeback recently, young hunters adopting their own symbols. Course, they wouldn't know a metal from a color, but it's the thought that counts.

If I can trace the coats of arms back to the founding families, I might be able to pick up the trail again.

* * *

 **Author's note** : The fights with Cardin, both of them, were based off stories told to me by SCA fighters. One, who fights two sword, mentioned how he had remade his main hand sword, and it was slightly shorter, enough he consistently missed by the exact difference in the length of the new sword. Another told me about how he won a fight with a superior fighter because he knew the exact distance between them. The bout started, he stepped forward, swung, and nailed the guy in the head, who wasn't expecting it, because he knew the exact distance needed to step in and ring his opponent's helmet like a bell. Course, he got trounced in the next match with the guy, but he was very proud of that single victory since it was verse a knight.

The heraldry is modified heraldry attributed to Joan of Arc, changed to have the two Arcs around the sword instead of a crown. You can see the picture in the story's art.

Also, lots of shout out and nods to other series. Points to you if you get them. The most obscure is probably poor Griffin. Any idea where he comes from? I'll give you two hints. It's originally an old book, and if you want a modern example of the trope from a TV show, the character would be named Marcie.

Thanks again to College Fool.

And remember, I can't answer your questions if you don't sign in when you review.


	10. Chapter 10

Jaune paused for a moment, hand running over the painted design, before he hauled the door open to reveal a room filled with weapons and armor. Blades of various sizes, from short dirks to large great swords hung on one wall, shields on another. Sets of armor sat on stands, ready to be pulled off and used at a moment's notice. Boxes of ammo had been stacked together and a large square shield laid on top in the back, forming a makeshift table on which sat a few piles of books. The final wall had a motley collection of various trick weapons in their smaller forms.

"It's beautiful," whispered Ruby as she stared at the various sharp and pointy implements of death with stars in her eyes.

Seeing her reaction, Jaune wondered why he'd never thought to do this earlier; he'd known she loved weapons from the first day here. Had his old friends really messed him up that much? Pushing that thought from his mind, he kicked aside a stray box of ammo.

"Sorry I can't exactly offer you a seat," he apologized as he rubbed the back of his head. "The armor stands take up a fair bit of room."

But Ruby wasn't listening. "What's that?" she demanded, pointing to an axe hanging on the back wall. "Is that the axe?"

"Yup. It expands out into a halberd or a great axe," answered Jaune, but Ruby was already looking at the next thing.

"And those?" The objects were a set of metal cylinders, the same as she'd seen him clip to his armor on the initiation day.

"Expandable lance-spears, with optional dust injection." And man had it taken time to get those right. They took too much effort to make to be expendable, but by the same token had a nasty tendency to explode if he didn't get them exactly right. Complicated weapon construction outside of simple shifting designs was never his strong point.

"Those?" This time she was hovering near a set of weapons in the back corner, with what looked like their exact duplicates on the opposite wall.

"That's a short sword that fans open into a circular shield, like the red and white one on the wall." Ruby could guess how the sections slide apart from the unusually thick sword into a round shield, and with a closer look, one set was clearly mecha-shift and the other wasn't.

"And _that_?" Jaune looked up in surprise from watching Ruby examine one of his lighter suits of armor, because it wasn't Ruby that asked the question; it was Weiss.

"Just a simple rapier, no frills." He should have guessed that would catch her eye. It was rather out of place compared to the theme of most of the rest of his weapons.

"But you know how to use it?" demanded Weiss, narrowing her eyes as he shrugged. Having a weapon you had no experience in using, especially one of that fine quality, made no sense. While it didn't hold a candle to her own blade, and had no outside features beyond a sharp blade, she could still tell it was especially fine, if simple, craftsmanship. And had seen use if the sweat stains and slight wear on the handle wrapping were any signs.

"Kinda?" Jaune walked over to simple rapier and picked it up, giving it a twirl, careful not to hit anyone or anything, before falling into a decent fencer's stance and running through a simple movement. Straightening back up, he gently set the weapon back in place.

"I'm not even close to the best at it, or anywhere near your level, but Indy made sure I at least knew how to handle one. I think it was revenge for calling his sword a frog-sticker that one time, since it gave him a reason to poke me with a sharp object every time he saw me. Though I did deserve it."

Pyrrha was rather surprised he'd annoy a teacher enough to want to stab him, she thought he took training too seriously for that. "Really? What did you do to him?"

"I had a crush on my sister's teammate, Buttercup, and I thought they were dating, so I did my best to annoy him. You know, 'ambushing' him, chasing him with my toy Crocea Mors, and calling him names."

He paused as Pyrrha let out a giggle, no doubt imagining a small Jaune harassing a much larger Hunter. "Turns out I was completely wrong, and Buttercup was dating a hunter from another team she met while on a mission to eliminate an infestation of Rous near the fire swamps of Mistral."

"Rous?" asked Yang from her seat on an ammo stack.

"Giant rat Grimm," answered Pyrrha before Jane could. "They are rarer on this side of the sea, but are common around Mistral. They can be devious, and have a nasty tendency to adapt to certain elements."

Jaune found himself nodding along with her explanation. The ones from the fire swamp were immune to fire, and would try to stage fights where gas was about to erupt. It made for an impressive story when Buttercup had told him how she'd met Wesley, enough so that he had no objections and had to concede defeat in his quest for her hand.

Weiss had been silent since she'd gotten her answer, busy staring at the rapier she'd picked up, particularly a signature carved into the area where the blade met the guard. "Hold on a second. Indy. Do you mean Indigo Montoya? World renowned fencer and duelist Indigo Montoya?"

Jaune just scratched his head. "I guess? He was always Indy to me, since I have a sister named Indigo. I think that's another reason he'd always stab me and call it teaching, since his team picked up the nickname from me."

"Ughh. I can't believe it, you trained with one of the best rapier wielders in the world, and you treat it like nothing! He's won in his weapon class for the past three world tournaments!" Gently putting the rapier back down, she threw up her hands in frustration and stomped off, muttering about the unfairness of the world.

"What was her problem?" asked Nora.

"At a guess? I bet he refused to train her." Yang gave a small shrug. "She's kinda uptight about that kind of stuff. But I bet you she'll be coming back later asking you if you can give her his contact information."

"Really?" Jaune brightened up at the thought; it would be a chance to chat with her some about something other than schoolwork. And he could sympathize with her regarding the training; one of his dad's old friends had turned down one of his training requests and he'd moped for days on missing the chance at seeing the man's shield work. Maybe Indy would trade some help with Weiss for some advice on catching his sister's attention. Not that he'd give much, Bianca decided who she liked for herself, and he knew at this point she was just waiting for Indigo to make the first move.

Then Jaune noticed Nora inspecting a small box marked with the high explosives symbol. He made a note to make sure nothing was missing from it later. She wouldn't steal anything, she'd just borrow it, and then return it four times as strong with a hair trigger. He liked his bombs just as they were, strong enough, and stable.

"So, you really made and trained with all of these?" asked Ruby as she carefully put down the lance she'd been examining.

"Yeah. That's why I was so frustrated this morning. All that, and I still have problems judging distance when I first use a new blade. I should be better." His hand went to his right arm, rubbing it as he remembered the training he'd undergone, both to use his left hand, and to judge distances. Frustration didn't describe the half of it; but he wasn't ready to talk about it now.

Pyrrha seemed to sense his discontent, and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry Jaune, you'll get it in time." He wanted to brush it off, to shout that he'd already had put in plenty of time; that he shouldn't be making such rookie mistakes anymore, not after everything he'd gone through. The training had to be worth it, and if he couldn't pick up a new weapon and almost instantly know the difference, was it really?

Instead he gave a small nod, holding it in. She was his friend, his partner, and meant well, even if she'd misunderstood the source of his frustration. He had no right to snap at her. "Well, practice makes perfect. And speaking of, I need to get started with mine. Can't start slacking off now. We still good for team training later tonight?"

"You bet Jaune, cya then." With a running leap, Nora landed on Ren's back, legs wrapped around his waist. "Come on Ren, let's make like a sloth and leaf."

"Nora, that makes no sense." He walked out of the unit, heading for his own, Nora still attached to him while Pyrrha left in the other direction with a wave.

"And puns are my job," shouted Yang after them, ducking out afterwards. Blake had vanished some minutes before.

"Oh, hey Ruby, before you go, I had a question for you."

His fellow leader paused at the door, looking back. He tried not to show his nervousness, though his hands betrayed him with their constant fluttering as his fingers wrapped around each other in an endless dance. This was a big request for him, and hopefully a step in the right direction.

"Now that you've seen this, mind helping me with a project? I'll be upgrading my armor again soon, I have some major plans for it, and I'd love your help. Not that I don't trust the engineering department here, I'd just prefer someone I trust to look over everything. I'm not too good with the more fiddly electronic bits." He said it all in one breath, trying to get it out before he could change his mind and reconsider. Outside his dad and the weapon smiths he'd worked with, he'd never let anyone else work on his armor, let alone a classmate. But he did trust her, he wasn't lying about that, and he knew he needed the help to get it to the next stage.

She beamed at him from under her hood, standing a little taller at the praise. "I'd love to Jaune. Just let me know when. And maybe we can add a sniper rifle to that axe-halberd of yours. Or maybe an exploding rocket lance. Oh, maybe a gunblade!"

The nerves disappeared in a sudden rush of relieved laughter. But he noticed she seemed a bit put off by his merriment, seeming to shrink back slightly under her hood. So, he tried to explain, even though it meant revealing another one of his deeper secrets, one that the Signal kids never would have left him alone about if they'd known. He was sure Dove would have mentioned it earlier if he'd known. But for making her feel better it seemed a cheap cost.

"Not laughing at your Ruby, honest. Just happy you agreed. But, there's one small problem with your idea. Take a look around; what don't you see?" He gestured at the locker around them.

Obediently, Ruby paused in her dreams of the various stabby and shooty objects they could make, and ran an expert's eye over the room. There were a lot of simple weapons with no tricks, the kind Signal students learned to make before they could start on mecha-shift versions. Even if they looked to be slightly higher quality than normal, there wasn't anything odd about them. If he'd made as many as the locker had, it made sense the quality would improve.

And then there were the suits of armor, which were definitely better than anything she'd seen at Signal, more like mecha-shift weapons with the exhausting care they'd been made with. There was the one she'd seen him wear for training, another that looked to be all mail, and a third that seemed to be a mixture of plates and straps she didn't recognize the style for. All looked functional and had seen use judging by the small marks, dings and signs of repair.

And of course there were the mecha-shift weapons themselves. Decent quality, far inferior to anything she'd be able to make of course; when she'd looked at them earlier there were a few ways they could have been made more robust, or shift faster. But they served their purpose well enough she supposed.

Something was niggling in the back of her mind though. With all the shifting weapons, she didn't see any barrels. And the ammo... It was all types for shotguns, she'd seen her sister's stash often enough to recognize the shape. Which was what Durandal used. Which meant…

"You don't have any ranged weapons? Not besides Durandal, do you?" Which was odd, most hunters tended to at least have a backup pistol tucked somewhere...or maybe that was just her Uncle. He was a bit paranoid.

"Exactly. Ruby, I have a confession to make." He heaved a sigh, play acting as if he was about to tell a deep, dark secret weighing on him. Which, really he was, yet talking with her, it didn't seem so bad. Maybe there was hope yet.

Leaning in so his breath tickled her ear, where he whispered, "I'm a terrible shot."

"Really?" she breathed out, her eyes wide. It was an unthinkable thought, not to be good with guns.

He nodded, stepping back out of her space, somehow feeling lighter for having told her. "Really really. Can't shoot most things to save my life, quite literally in fact. And believe me, I tried."

He ran a hand through his hair, remembering. "My Dad tried. His teammates tried. I'm just a horrible shot."

Ruby shook her head in denial. "No, I refuse to believe that. You're an awesome fighter, and you can't shoot? What about pistols?" They could be fit into just about any weapon with a little creativity. She'd even hidden one in a teddy bear once.

"Missed completely." He mimed one with his hand before shaking it badly. "Either I shook too much or took way too much time to aim, and ended up missing anyway." That, or he forgot he was carrying a gun and ended up trying to block something with it. And forgetting to enforce a gun in a fight then blocking with it tended to end with a gun cut in half. Or exploding.

"Rifle?" she asked. It was the second most common gun type among hunters after all, and her own personal favorite. Plus there was plenty of variation to work with in that class.

Jaune gave a weak chuckle; that had been a failure of a day as well. "Literally couldn't hit the broadside of a barn. Ended up hitting the next building over when I dialed the scope wrong."

Now she was getting desperate; there had to be something he'd tried. "What about rocket launchers?"

"With the way I laughed when my Dad handed it to me, he never even let me try." There was no way he'd tell her what actually happened. He'd done his best to repress it.

Ruby had the feeling there was more to that story then he was telling, but then suddenly the obvious answer hit her, pushing the thought aside.

"Shotgun!" she yelled triumphantly, knowing she had him. "I mean, you have one in Durandal, so you have to be able to use it." No one was stupid enough to build a weapon they couldn't use after all.

He gave a nod. "Only thing I was halfway decent at, and only with shot, not slugs. Also helps I generally only use it when the target's basically touching the muzzle."

"Wow...I mean...Just wow. No wonder you like the classics." She almost felt like she had to sit down at the thought of someone without a decent gun. Sure, Weiss, didn't exactly have a gun, but she had all that fancy Dust instead, which was just as cool. Especially when she stabbed something and it exploded. Then again, a shotgun shield was pretty awesome.

"Well, they get the job done. And they do fit my theme. Brand recognition's import you know. Plus I've fit some tricks into them." He paused, considering. "Though your rocket lance does sound good."

Ha! She'd get him to the gun side eventually. She just had to start with baby steps...and maybe something with a bit smaller range than a sniper rifle, like some more solid shot for his shield. "It's a deal then. We upgrade your armor, and I get to make you a rocket lance."

"You know, it sounds like I'm getting the better part of the deal here." He had to point it out. It had been a while since he had friends, but even he knew he was asking for a lot of time and effort from her, and it sounded like she wasn't getting much from it. He didn't like the thought of being in debt, not even to a friend.

Ruby gave him a smile and a look that clearly said she thought he was being stupid. "Well duh, that's because I haven't asked for my payment yet. This is merely...negotiating."

He decided to play along, bantering with her and the others seemed to come naturally when he let it. It was almost like hanging with his sisters or dad again. "And what will it take to hire the expert services of master engineer Ruby Rose?"

"Hmmm," she tapped her chin, pretending to be deep in thought. "I'm thinking cookies. Homemade of course; top weapons designers like me always get the best. Chocolate chip is preferable, but I'm willing to settle for oatmeal and raisin, provided other payment is offered."

Jaune nodded. "Of course, of course. I'd expect nothing but to pay top lien for the best, so chocolate chip it will be, a baker's dozen at least. Will there be anything else, or have our negotiations concluded?"

"Yes, that's just my retainer. In addition I will also require a box of strawberries. I also expect your own expertise consulting for history. Ms. Schnee is starting to hassle me relating to the quality of my performance in that sector of my business."

Jaune gave a sad, slow shake of his head, as if bemoaning Weiss's ignorance. "Well, we simply can't be experts in everything, no matter what she would like us to believe. What would we negotiate over if that was the case?" he asked, hand held out like an actor in a play questioning the nature of life. "So, do we have an accord? I can have terms drawn up after I consult with my lawyers."

"I do believe you are an honorable man Mr. Jaune, surely two business people such as ourselves can simply shake on it for now?" asked Ruby, even as she held out her hand. "A gentleman's agreement, as it were." With great dignity and aplomb, they shook on it.

Jaune couldn't hold it any longer. "Snerk." A snort of laughter was cut off as he clamped down on it, but it was too late. Ruby met his eyes, and then they both broke down in giggles, the sounds of laughter filling the storage unit and echoing down the hallway.

When they'd finally recovered, wiping tears from their eyes, Jaune straightened up. "This Monday work?"

"Sure," agreed Ruby cheerfully. "We can figure out when you want to work on your armor then. But if you send me your ideas before, I can start to look them over. You know, see what we'll need and stuff."

"That works for me. Tutoring and cookies it is then. I'll get my dad's recipe before then." And he would. His Dad might claim all his recipes were secret, and have a nasty habit of giving him deliberately wrong ones, but he was pretty sure he'd fold if he told him it was for a girl. Especially if he sent a picture of her puppy dog eyes with his request. Then again, his Dad might be immune from his sisters' efforts.

After Ruby left, Jaune began to rummage around on his makeshift desk, looking for the lubricant. After a thorough cleaning it would be time to train with Durandal. Then maybe some axe work before dinner and the joint training.

"Jaune."

Startled, Jaune tripped over one of the ammo boxes as he dove for the nearest weapon, and almost ending up knocking over one of his armor stands. As common sense reasserted itself and reminded him that he wasn't about to be attacked in the middle of Beacon, he made a grab for it before it could topple but missed. Thankfully another set of hands steadied it from the other side, and Jaune found himself staring at Blake. "Nice job sneaking up on me."

There was a small smile on her face that quickly disappeared as she gave a one armed shrug, more a small twitch of her shoulder then anything. "Sorry. Force of habit."

He could only shake his head. "Don't apologize, I'd love to have a habit like that. Half the time I sound like a shopping cart if I don't remember to use aura." The armor stand which continued to faintly rattle illustrated his point perfectly. "So, what can I do for you?"

Her golden eyes locked on him as she took a deep breath, before asking rather bluntly, "Why did you help Velvet earlier?"

Jaune blinked. The name wasn't ringing a bell. "Who?"

A brief flash of irritation appeared on her face. "The Faunus girl from earlier?"

"Oh, her." He'd never gotten her name. Hopefully she was fine, she'd looked rather down when she left, but he felt trying to talk with her would have just made it worse. It did the other times. "Because it was the right thing to do."

Blake just continued to stare at him, making him feel like he needed to say more. "I can't save Remnant, but I can help with what I see."

"Then why not help earlier, like all the times in class when Cardin was being a jackass?"

He felt a spark of anger flare into life at her words. She didn't do anything, and then she wanted to know why he didn't do more? As he opened his mouth to respond he realized then that it hadn't been an accusation. Looking at her face, her eyes, it was clear that she just wanted to know why.

"Cause like my dad said, opinions are like assholes, everybody has one, and most of them stink. Just cause Cardin's an idiot doesn't mean I can break his legs every time he says something stupid; if that was true he'd never walk again."

He waited, but the joke fell flat. Seeing she wasn't even going to crack a grin, he finished, "I'd be as bad as him if I did that."

"But aren't you? You're the one that grabbed him first. You're the one that proposed the fight."

"Hey, he started it by grabbing Velvet!"

"And that makes it okay to beat him up?" That time her question really had been an accusation, and it made his reply sharper come sharper he'd intended.

"She needed help, and she clearly wasn't going to help herself, even if I bet she could have wiped the floor with them. Sometimes you need to use force to teach a lesson, and this time Cardin did something to deserve it. Don't get mad at me because I did something when no one else would."

Blake's eyes widened at his words, and he heard a hiss of indrawn breath before suddenly she was gone, leaving him alone in the storage unit.

Why had she confronted him like that? Shaking his head to try and clear it, Jaune started looking for the lubricant again. A good workout was just what he needed to clear his head. Then maybe he'd call Ms. Mauve and see what she made of it all.

* * *

 **Scholar's Note: Personal Weapons**

Every semester without fail I have someone ask me about weapons. By now I could probably give this lecture in my sleep, and if my memory ever fails enough to need this lesson plan, do me a favor and place me in a collection with the artifacts I've found cause I'll be that old.

The better a weapon, the better a Hunter. The better the Hunter, the better the weapon. I'd pit my whip and pistol against any new-fangled mecha-shift weapon you can name that a trainee hunter would use, and I'd come out ahead 9 times out of 10. And you know why? Aura.

It's long been know the longer a person used a weapon, the better they get. But even in the cases where two people went through the exact same training, with the exact same weapon, they could tell if they got swapped. Crazy personal weapons are more than just a reflection of the ideal of the Color Revolution, though that certainly played a role in their rise.

The reason is once again aura. A hunter channels their aura through a weapon, making it a literal extension of their soul, and allowing it to defy physics, much like the Hunter themselves does. Blades become unnaturally sharp, armor becomes tougher, shields unbreakable. And the longer they use the same weapon, the better the feel they get with it. Cutting a tree becomes cutting stone becomes cutting steel, and less and less aura is needed for the same results.

That's why people can use crazy things like high-caliber sniper-scythes and gun-nun-chucks without hurting themselves. Cause with their aura flowing through the weapon, it might as well be a part of them. Incidentally that's also why specialized dust rounds can affect Semblance use.

* * *

 **Author's Note** : well, there you go. The next chapter. On time even.

After this we start getting into Forever Fall. Yay!

As always, read and review please, it keeps me going and I like replying to them.

And thanks to College Fool for his help.


	11. Chapter 11

"Now class, remember the trip to Forever Fall will be in two days. The briefing packets have been sent to your scrolls. Dismissed."

As Professor Goodwitch began to gather up some papers, Ruby turned to her fellow team leader. "Two days to prepare for a quick trip?"

"My guess is it's more than a quick trip." Pulling out his scroll, Jaune flipped through the new messages.

But Ren had beaten him to it. "Only if a quick trip means five days in the field."

"What? Five days without proper showers? My hair," moaned Yang, already imagining the damage her precious locks would suffer.

"It's not that bad. I've done a week trip before with my Dad." Everyone from both teams turned to look at Jaune. "What? I told you I trained with him."

"So, what would you recommend Jaune? I'll admit my experience is more limited to hunter on hunter exercises," confessed Pyrrha. She'd hardly even left Mistral except for the occasional smaller tournament, and never to hunt Grimm. And even those tournament trips had been a stretch; after a certain point her mother had made sure her opponents came to her in the Arena.

"Well, I've never been on a school trip before. Let's take a look at the details."

Jaune hummed thoughtfully as he looked through the briefing in more detail. It looked like one of those minimal information assignments he heard teachers loved to give, nothing outside the starting area and pickup point had been mapped. It'd been awhile since he was outside the kingdom walls. He could still remember the first trip, the excitement to see the outside, and the knowledge his father believed he could protect himself, that he was capable. It'd be like a trip down memory lane to go out again.

"Hmmm, looks we have to get some sap from the trees in the area, then carry it to the rendezvous point. Interesting mission setup."

"Why would they send us to collect sap of all things?" asked Ruby, scratching her head in confusion as she tried to puzzle out their latest assignment. It seemed almost as strange as the time Professor Oobleck sent them all to Vale on a coffee run.

"It's a core mission type we're practicing for, reconnaissance, or perhaps search and retrieval. The Schnee Dust Corporation sends numerous such missions out to test the viability and quality of various dust deposits, as do the other dust suppliers. My sister went on several," added Weiss as an afterthought, "And found high quality reserves."

That explanation seemed reasonable enough. Most areas with Dust deposits worth testing that hadn't been mapped yet were far enough from the Kingdom's that no one would send hunters in training to look for them. With the forest right there, it made sense to use it.

"Well, mission's a mission, no matter how strange. But I think something's up with it."

"You went from not knowing about school trips to paranoid in one assignment?" asked Blake, looking at him over the top of her scroll. Those were the first real words she'd said to him since their talk.

"Hey, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. I mean, why sap, and not chess pieces again? Theoretically, we could just grab any random tree and be done the first day. It seems too easy." Really, five days to tap a tree or whatever it was one did to gather sap. There had to be more to it.

Weiss raised her finger, mouth opening, before she paused, a considering look coming over her face. "You know, he does have a point. If we are modeling a search mission, why pick something so common to get."

Jaune blushed at the praise, and then realized everyone was looking at him again. Hurriedly trying to regain his composure, he turned to Ren and Nora. "Do you two mind researching the trees? Try and figure out the trick, and just generally whatever you think might be useful. I guess that should include how to get the stuff as well. I mean, I always just buy it from the store. Pyrrha and I will look at potential routes and any mapping people have done of the area. From the barebones one they gave us in the briefing, the starting area is near the major train line to the mountains, so there should be some general information available. We'll also handle supplies."

His team nodded in agreement to his suggestions. "So, what about us?"

The question coming from Ruby caught him completely off guard. He hadn't expected them to actually want to follow his advice. "You're really okay with me giving orders?'

"Sure, you're the expert, just as long as they're not too crazy." Not that Ruby could see Jaune doing anything like that. In the few other joint practices they'd had he'd been good when given overall command on the simulated missions. And when it was her turn to lead the joint teams, he'd let her without any complaints. If anything, he even seemed somewhat relieved to be playing second fiddle. It made it kinda nice to see him stepping up like this, and she wasn't about to squash the enthusiasm she saw in his eyes.

Seeing her nod in agreement, he turned to his crush, "Weiss."

The girl in question arched an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue. "Would you mind seeing if you have any company records of the area beyond what we can dig up in the public archives?"

The request was a good one, and it helped offset the sting of following another team's leader. "I'll ask, but I don't believe dust was ever found in large enough quantities in Forever Fall for mining operations, so there might not be much."

He nodded, that was fair enough. But anything beyond the basics could be useful. "Okay. So, I can think of two other things we need. First, is something to collect the sap in and store it, since I'm assuming it won't come in nice little plastic bottles."

"Oh, oh," Ruby waved her hand frantically. "I call dibs."

Already an idea was growing in her mind about what she could make. And she bet the other thing had to be more research, which wasn't nearly as fun as engineering something. "Ren, can you get me the details of the harvesting part by tonight?"

She got a nod from him, which was about all she expected. But she knew it meant she'd have a nice summarized report on her scroll by that evening. That gave her plenty of time to brush up on proper pressurized storage units, and something to cross-reference her own research to.

"Well," Jaune turned towards Blake and Yang. "I guess that leaves you two with checking what Grimm we can expect."

"Sure, we got that," Yang nodded in agreement, ignoring the fact she was voluntelling her partner for the assignment. "I bet Blake already has a book on it. Just promise me you'll pick a good camping spot near water. I need my hair care."

"Just to make sure, we are planning to stick together then?" He didn't want to assume RWBY was planning to stay with his team unless they said so, even if it would be nice to have the backup.

However, it wasn't RWBY that answered him. It was Nora.

"Of course! Camping is always more fun with friends! There'll be marshmallows! Come on Ren, let's go find us a tree." Cackling, Nora dragged her partner away.

Ruby turned to look at Jaune. "Well, she is right. This should be fun."

* * *

They were the first to arrive at the supply depot, prompting a raised eyebrow from the clerk. "Little eager, aren't cha?"

"Rather get prepared now and remember what I forgot tomorrow, then out in the field," answered Jaune as the clerk checked the two off his list. "We're picking up supplies for Team RWBY as well."

"Alright, but make sure their leader messages me. Otherwise it'll be marked on your record as theft," warned the clerk as he waved them through.

Pyrrha stared around at the warehouse full of supplies, her extra senses allowing her to feel the myriad bits of metal all around them. And she had not a clue what most of it did. "So Jaune, where do we begin?"

"Well, the supply list they included isn't bad, but a bit weighty. I mean, the tents are large enough to easily fit two people, but they want us to bring one each. If we cut out half of those, it'll give us more room for some other stuff. And I won't be as awkward as one of the group tents."

Pyrrha nodded, the thought of sharing a tent with her partner flashing through her mind. Hurriedly, she looked around, trying to think of something else. Her eyes lighted on a cart, and she grabbed it, using it to distract herself as she made her way back to her partner. "Like what Jaune?"

He gave a shrug as he checked the map of the warehouse. "Well, slightly better sleeping bags for one. It's supposed to rain, so we want something better than the standard. And they have the benefit of being lighter as well. And socks. Trust me, you can never have enough socks."

Pausing, he realized Pyrrha had pulled out her scroll and was taking notes. "Really?"

"It's going to be my first expedition, I intend to be prepared."

"Well then, let's make sure you are. Clothes we can all handle ourselves, just use common sense since we'll be in the woods. So the main things are food and water. Thankfully, the ration kits have water purification tablets in them, but you always want at least one backup system."

"You mean we won't be expected to hunt for food?"

Jaune burst out laughing.

"I...What? What's so funny?" demanded Pyrrha, cheeks burning with embarrassment now as her partner continued to laugh.

Taking in great gulping breaths of air, Jaune managed to straighten up. "I just...Ruby...Can you imagine her hunting something besides Grimm with Crescent Rose? Boom!" His hands flew apart to illustrate. "Feathers everywhere! Mincemeat!"

He lost it again at the imagined scene, Pyrrha joining him as the scene flashed through her mind. As they started to get their composure back, and Jaune looked up, meeting Pyrrha's gaze, she said one word. "Nora."

And then they were off again, their laughter filling the warehouse. "Can't breathe," Jaune wheezed out as he leaned against the shelf for support, tears streaming from his face. Pyrrha wasn't in much better shape, having to hang onto the cart to stay upright.

Finally, they managed to look at each other again without breaking into giggles. In an effort to get back on track, Pyrrha asked, "So, these kits will be our food?"

"Yeah. You can eat them cold, heat them in the pack, or actually cook them for a decent meal. Without the tents we can bring a collapsible pot for Ren to cook them in. Plus, odds are even cold they'll taste better than anything we could scrounge to cook. Trust me, wild food isn't nearly as romantic and great as movies would have you think."

"You've tried foraging before? Was it on the trip with your father?"

Pyrrha noticed Jaune went still at the question, the last traces of merriment being wiped away instantly. "No...It wasn't with my father."

"Then when?"

She could see him struggling with the question, emotions flashing over his face. Finally, after a too long pause, he answered her. "I had to survive in the wilderness for a month as part of my training. Let's leave it at that."

With a nod, Pyrrha let the topic go, asking an inane question about some other camping supplies instead. But as she followed Jaune through the aisles with the cart, her thoughts were still on the conversation.

Training...the word flittered through her mind, refusing to leave. Her victories in the arena hadn't been on pure strength alone. She wasn't stupid, far from it, and had a keen eye for details. Now, pieces of the puzzle that was her partner's past were starting to fall into place.

Little things that had been bothering her about Jaune. His anger about tying a match with an average level opponent. His frustration at being unable to judge distances with completely brand new weapons, a skill even advanced students struggled with. His seeming disregard for certain injuries and tolerance for pain in their training sessions.

Training…Someone had hurt her partner, worse than his old friends. She had the why, and some of the how, now she only needed the who.

* * *

"So recap time. Older trees are located deeper into the forest, where Scroll connection will be nonexistent as we leave the starting area and the signal boosters by the railroad. They have the best sap, which is also alcoholic. And it either attracts Grimm, or they've figured out we like it, so there's always old Grimm in those parts of the forest. So we've got to trek across rocky, ravine filled terrain, get the sap, and get to the meeting point in five days."

"Are you alright Jaune? You're repeating yourself." Pyrrha reached out a hand from her seat next to him, feeling his forehead as he clutched his helmet in his lap like a lifeline.

"I'm telling you all this, because usually I either meditate or sleep on Bullheads, which doesn't work with all the noise," Jaune waved a hand around, encompassing the filled Bullhead transport.

All the student Hunters going on the trip had been packed onto two Bullheads, their extra items stashed in the cargo containers carried below. The plan was for the cargo Bullheads to continue on with their two fighting escorts to check up on one of the settlement Dust mines along the railroad, and inspect it for any damage before returning to them for the pickup.

"Or stare blankly ahead, which is out for obvious reasons," he finished.

"No, please, go ahead and stare Jaune. I am amazing after all." Yang gave a wicked grin from her seat just a crossed from him, her knees nearly touching his own in the cramped transport. She knew perfectly well the raised middle seats put her assets right at his eye level.

Jaune ignored her, his Dad's advice never having covered what to do with a girl like Yang. Any time he'd started on stories like that, invariably Dad had ended up talking about Mom, and he'd stopped listening for his sanity's sake. "So, that leaves mindlessly repeating the planning. Or singing."

"Please Jaune, go through the briefing again?" Ren deadpanned from the seat next to him.

"He really should, after all, he forgot the most important part. But that's okay, I know my beauty's distracting." Yang shot Weiss a smirk as she said that, pushing her two assets out slightly to emphasize her point to the slender girl. She received a glare in return.

Ignoring the silent byplay between the two girls, Jaune focused on the question, trying to think what he might have forgotten. As the plane gave another lurch, he pushed it aside, deciding to just ask. "So, what did I forget then?"

"The hard sap sells for a pretty nice payday! Once we get the bit for the teacher's beer run, the rest is ours!" cheered Yang.

Ruby gave her a high five. "Gourmet cookies and extra refined dust rounds, here we come! I knew I made those containers extra-large for a reason. And it wasn't just because the Mk. I and II exploded."

"I could use another few books," mused Blake.

"Or maybe we could replace the deathtraps you call beds. I don't know why as the one person to object I still got one of the lower bunks," Weiss muttered from her seat next to Ruby.

"Couldn't you just buy the new bunks yourself?" asked Nora. "I mean, you are an heiress to the largest energy propellant company in Remnant. You could buy all the bunkbeds in the world, and your own army to go in them. Then you could wage war on the Kingdoms until you stood as leader of a united Remnant, a beautiful and terrible queen! At least until we stopped you," she added at the end as she saw Weiss close her eyes to contemplate that plan. "And we would. There can only be one Queen, and that's me."

"Students. We will be arriving at the drop of point shortly. You will have fifteen minutes to grab your gear before the transports will be taking off again. Professor Peach and I will be awaiting you at the pickup zone. Remember, we are only here for emergencies, we fully expect you to have prepared and have a plan in mind, as even in the event of an emergency the chance of us reaching you in time is slim. This is what you've trained for." Professor Goodwitch finished her speech, adjusting her glasses before taking her seat.

Then the speakers crackled again. "And do remember the sap please," added the cheery voice of Professor Peach.

* * *

The second the two Bullheads touched down, kicking up the red leaves into a swirling vortex, the students sprang into action. Above, their two heavy weapon variant escorts continued to circle, keeping a wary eye on the scene of controlled chaos, and any Grimm that might think to take advantage of it. Teams had been seated and disembarked in order of how the gear they'd stowed below had been packed, grabbing it from the underslung cargo containers before trotting off to the side.

That didn't stop Jaune from getting jostled by Cardin and Dove as the other boys got their supplies, but Jaune just ignored it. He hadn't expected Cardin to hold to the terms of their bet, but it would have been nice. Instead, it seemed he had turned his attention solely towards Jaune. But that was okay, he could handle it and it meant others were left alone. He had his real friends, and that was enough.

Well within the fifteen minute mark the Bullheads pulled up again, cargo containers now only holding the supplies for the outpost, and took off, leaving the group alone.

"Students, depart. We'll see you at the rendezvous point." Her own pack of supplies strapped on, Professor Goodwitch faded away into the woods, Professor Peach at her side. Within moments, even having watched, the students had no idea where the two blondes had gone.

"Let's go!" Gesturing to the side, Ruby led the two teams deeper into the forest even as the other students slowly filtered into the blood red woods.

"So, here's the general plan." They all clustered around Jaune, pulling out there's as he flipped his case open. They'd done a detailed briefing before ever getting on the Bullhead, but actually seeing the forest they planned to hike through, with its crimson trees and dark soil, made it all real in a way it hadn't been before. And if anybody had any objections or ideas, now was their time to say them before they ventured into the depths of the red wood.

"Assuming no large delays, at our speed it will take two days to get to the oldest part of the forest we can safely reach in our time frame, and another two days to get back out, then a day to the meeting point."

Ruby gave a nod from next to him. "We thought about trying to go further, but with all the roots and crevices and Grimm and stuff, we decided to play it safe."

"Works for me. You did plan on camping near water, right?" Yang cracked her knuckles threateningly, giving Jaune a playful glare.

He threw back an exaggerated salute in reply. "Aye aye, captain. How else was I supposed to make sure your smell didn't draw Grimm in for miles?"

"Oh, point to Jaune!" interjected Ruby, marking a point on an invisible score board. "Anyway, we should reach this stream by mid-day, just for you Yang."

She paused to point it out on the map, and Jaune picked up the briefing again. "Then we follow it to the larger river, and can follow that deeper into the forest. We've all got copies of the map, and remember the railroad will always be to the North. If you get separated and can't find us, make for that and your Scroll should pick up signal again when you get to the starting area. Then just follow the tracks to the east."

Nora slowly raised her hand. "Your map's broke Jaune."

Startled, Jaune stared down at the scroll on his arm, seeing the map displayed in all its marked up and noted glory. There was nothing wrong with it. A quick glance around showed everyone else's maps looked the same and perfectly fine, even Nora's. "Didn't you get a copy Nora?"

"Sure. But, it's missing the X that marks the spot. No treasure map's complete without it!" Reaching over, she scribbled a big X in the middle of the map, just past his first camp ground. "Now, let's goooo!"

Before she could go running off, Ruby interrupted, grabbing her arm. An oddly serious look was in her silver eyes as she glanced around at all her friends, meeting their eyes despite the height difference in most cases. "Remember, no grade is worth our lives, right? We're all getting back home."

From her tone, Jaune guessed there was a deeper story there, especially seeing the way Yang's face seemed to shut down at her sister's words. But now wasn't the time to ask.

"Relax. What could possibly go wrong?" The whole forest seemed to still at Nora's words.

Ren groaned, breaking the eerie silence. "Nora, remember, I said to never, ever ask that. Now something's going to happen."

As they started hiking deeper into the forest as Ren and Nora playfully bickered, Jaune couldn't help but wonder if Nora had done that on purpose to break up the serious air.

* * *

The beginning of the hike was relatively normal. There was the odd small group of Beowolves or Ursa, and the flocks of Nevermore typical to the forested regions of Vale, but those were easily dealt with.

"We're being followed," announced Blake as they took a quick rest stop. "And not by Grimm."

"Did you see who?" asked Ruby as she tucked her canteen back away.

Blake shook her head. "No. They're staying to far back for me to tell who. But they've showed up on my scroll's map several times."

"Then we'll let them be." Yang gave a shrug. "I mean, maybe they just decided to follow our lead for a bit. Or the river. Who cares?"

But her partner continued to give worried looks towards her scroll, and the map that had just shown a contact again.

Around the river the brush was less, making it easier to move, and the ground was relatively level, even if at points walls of earth rose up around them. It meant they managed to maintain a decent pace through the day. Soon dusk was approaching though, and it was time to set up camp. They could have hiked through most of the night to get even deeper in, but had decided it wasn't worth it. Better to play it safe and stay well rested.

"Awesome lake! But let's camp down there." Yang pointed to a raised area near where the lake turned back into a river, and well away from the placid blue waters. The whole area was in a bowl-like valley, the meeting point of several of the larger crevices that dotted and area and got more frequent as the mountains came closer. The hill was the one bit of higher ground, and looked like it might have been formed from old silt deposits.

"I'd thought you'd want to be right up next to it for maximum hair washing potential?" joked Jaune as they began to walk around the lakes edge, admiring the way the reflected blue of the sky contrasted with the small red trees surrounding it. .

"Sobeks" said Blake quite seriously, eyeing the still water, its placid surface only broken at the ends the river joined it.

"The weather here seems much colder than they'd normally prefer," remarked Ren, raising an eyebrow.

"Usually, but during our search we found records of them being seen in the woods before. Not often, and usually not confirmed, but enough I'd rather not take any chances," elaborated Yang.

"And the height will give us a better vantage point for watch," pointed out Ruby as she imagined how easy it would be to keep track of any Grimm getting close with Crescent Rose. It would even be a chance to test her new night scope!

"So we can have a fire then, like civilized people." Weiss let out a happy sigh at the thought. No instant rations for them, they could cook them properly in a fire. A bag smacking her in the face shook her from her dreams of the gourmet cooking of home.

"And marshmallows," added Nora, somehow pulling out a second bag and throwing it joyously in the air. Seconds later her first bag thumped back into her face as Weiss returned it.

Jaune just shook his head at their antics. Having friends again was nice, no chance of Grimm being drawn to depressing thoughts with them around like the second time he'd gone out with his Dad. It had been right after what would have been his first year of Signal, timed so he could invite his friends along to get some real experience. Instead, it ended up being him, his Dad's team, and what seemed like every Grimm for miles around. "And marshmallows. So, I'll get that fire going."

Weiss pushed him aside. "Please you caveman, you'll probably be using rocks or something and it'll take forever. I brought a dust lighter."

Reaching into her belt she pulled out a silver case, inscribed of course with the Schnee family symbol. "I'll take care of the fire after Yang brings me the wood. You set up the tents."

Jaune had a sneaking suspicion the real reason she wanted to start the fire was because she didn't know how to set up a tent. And that she was more excited about camping then she was letting on if the way she marched around trying to find the best spot for a fire was any indication. "Whatever m'lady commands."

Pulling up from his bow, Jaune turned to his partner. "Pyrrha, you want to help me with that? And I'm nominating you as cook Ren, I saw the spices you brought along."

"Seconded!" shouted Nora from the tree she was hanging in. Any mention of food, especially Ren's cooking, always grabbed her attention.

"All in favor?" Glancing around, Jaune tallied the raised hands, which specifically did not include Ren's. "Motion approved. Not that it matters because as supreme dictator of Team Juniper-"

"I think you mean leader," corrected Ruby, amused at her fellow team leader's words. Maybe next time Yang gave her trouble she could try using that line?

"That's what I said. As leader of Team Juniper, I declare Ren the cook. So let it be!" He gave a firm shake of his head, as if ending the matter.

"Really?" asked Ren flatly, face utterly stoic.

"I bet you can make the sludge from the meal packs taste decent." He tried to offer it as a challenge, but he could see Ren wasn't rising to the bait. So he tried another tactic, "And if you refuse, I'll have to take drastic measures."

"And what would those be?" Ren crossed his arms, preparing for the worst.

Flipping up the armor on his arm revealed his scroll tucked neatly in a built in case, one of the improvements Ruby had helped him make. It ran off the same power source that his helmet did, allowing it to last a lot longer than the typical charge would. Then again on a short mission like this it wouldn't matter, the hunter models already had an absurd battery life from the top of the line dust batteries. Not to mention movement based charging to extend it even further. When Scrolls might be the only contact between separated team members, or the only way to find a friend's remains, battery life was important.

Of course, that hadn't stopped Ruby from wanting to add that same kinetic charging to his armor to make it self-sustaining. But it would have required too much time to do it properly, and they'd shelved the idea for now, something he was grateful for. He already suspected Yang and Weiss would use him for a mobile charging station if they realized his armor could charge scrolls. With the extra energy they'd be demanding he bring along hair curlers and coffee pots.

A few quick taps brought up a picture he showed to Ren. "You cook, or I tell Nora it's your secret dream to be a chef."

Ren looked at the picture of himself, fast asleep, with a chef's hat balanced on his head. Crudely photo shopped in was a speech bubble saying 'I dream of being a chef and cooking pancakes every day. Fighting Grimm just makes my cooking better.'

"You put a hat on me when I was sleeping?"

"Yup." It had been hard too, Ren really did have reflexes like a ninja, and that included waking at a moment's notice. He'd only managed it by giving Nora a bunch of coffee and handing her over to Ren. He'd been so exhausted afterwards that getting the hat on had hardly made him twitch.

"Nora would never believe it." There was weakness in his tone, Jaune could hear it.

So he pounced. "Nora will do anything that ends with more pancakes. And you as a chef will equal more pancakes."

Ren sighed, as if in defeat, but Jaune could see a small smile, more of a smirk, tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Truly you've sunk to a new low Jaune. What ever happened to your knightly honor?

Jaune found himself answering without even thinking about it. "Hunger is the enemy Ren."

A thought floated through his mind; a few weeks ago and that comment would have made him angry, and now he was joking about it. If that wasn't a sign of how far he'd come, nothing was.

The thought made him smile, or maybe it was the fact that he knew he'd won now, and tasty food was theirs! Still, he couldn't leave it at just that. "Besides, do we really want Pyrrha cooking? You know, she volunteered when we were getting the supplies."

That got a laugh and a shudder from Ren. "Good thing I agreed then." They both remembered the time she tried to make snacks for practice night. It looked more like a burnt offering to the gods then sticky buns.

Yang dropped a load of firewood down next to them with a clatter. "Hey, what are you two slackers doing? Pyrrha's setting up the tents by herself!"

Turning around, Jaune jogged back over to where Pyrrha was working on putting up the first tent, carefully holding the directions in her free hand as she slid the poles together. "Sorry, just had to work out the meal plan."

* * *

By mid-morning the next day they'd gone deeper into the forest, leaving the railroad and any signs of civilization far behind. There weren't even any ruins like those that dotted the Emerald Forest.

"Any scroll signal?" asked Yang as she peered down at Blake's scroll.

"No." That was a given with how far they were from the railroad. But it wasn't connecting to the Kingdom's network that she was concerned about. It was the ghost reading that kept appearing on the edge of her pickup range, the same one from the day before. Even when she'd slipped away to try and get a reading on it before, all it had done was retreat backward until it vanished again.

It had to be students, it couldn't be the White Fang...

They'd looked at building a base in the area, and trying to gather the rarer mature sap for funding. It was what the scouting for that which had started the beginning of the end for her membership, laying the groundwork for the train mission.

But the disappearing scouts and hazardous terrain had ended those plans. As good as those canyons would be for hiding a base, they were a double edged sword. The thought kept playing through her mind though, what if they'd changed their mind? Were they following her even now?

"Ugh, this sucks." Yang threw up her hands in exasperation, not knowing the worries going through her partner's head. "The Achievemen were supposed to release a new album today."

Ruby posed heroically on a nearby stump, mirroring the statue at Beacon as she spoke. "You can get your new album later Yang. Just think about it, we're going where no one has ever gone before!"

Yang pulled her hood over her eyes as she passed, ruining her pose and making her sputter. "Yang!"

"Or at least no one lived to tell about it," commented Blake, the words involuntarily slipping out to kill the mood.

"Gee, thanks for that positive outlook." Yang went to ruffle her partner's hair like she had with Ruby, but Blake ducked without even looking at her, leaving her to pout.

"Look on the bright side," added Jaune as he pushed through a low growing bush, "At least we'll get paid for the mapping data."

"True, that means spread out people," ordered Yang as she playfully pushed Jaune to the side. "You're paying for my luxury hair treatment with every step, and after this trip I'm going to need it."

"You mean the school will get paid," corrected Weiss. "Only an imbecile signs a contract without reading it first. Beacon claims priority use of any mapping data and Dust deposits found on these excursions. It's their major source of financing, outside the funding the Councils give and mission payments."

Jaune and Yang both ignored the implied insult, knowing that's just how Weiss was. The insults always came paired with some useful bit of information.

"We do however get a tuition credit, bonus supplies, and other undisclosed rewards for anything we find beyond the normal call of a mission as an incentive for us to turn over such items."

Everyone turned to stare at Ren. "What? I made sure to read the rules just to see what Nora could get away with."

The hyperactive girl nodded. "He made sure I could bring a sloth to Beacon! Or the Nora mobile. It was sweet of him."

Jaune froze mid step, turning to look at the girl. "Nora, as your team leader, I have to ask. Did you bring a sloth to beacon?" He could just imagine it lurking in his closet and finding his secret stash of sweets while they were gone.

"No, the zoo caught me before I could get it out." Nora didn't actually seem that sad about that fact, then again nothing seemed to keep her down for long. Shaking his head at her antics, and how even months later she could still surprise him, he stepped over a log covered in white fungus, the toad stools sticking out from their red and black surroundings.

Yang picked up the conversation again after a few minutes of hiking in silence. "Moving on. Is anyone else surprised? I mean, we've seen nothing but Beowolves, Ursa, and Nevermore. I expected something more from Forever Fall. Maybe some King Taijitu. I was looking forward to another picture."

Weiss gave a sniff at her teammate's juvenile wish, but answered. "Based on the few aerial photos we had, we're approaching the deepest part of the forest. The trees are already growing closer together. If there's going to be large Grimm, that's where they'll be."

They hiked for a few more hours, the terrain growing rockier and more crevassed as they carried on. If the south east of vale was known for its wild forests and deep caves, the north was known for its equally wild forests and mountains. Those same mountains played host to a set of dust mines, the cargo of which was delivered via the railroad which used the terrain to its advantages, running along the bottoms of crevices on raised tracks to help deter Grimm, and avoid the periodic flooding. Even with that, the occasional train still disappeared. One had done so in the months before Jaune started at Beacon.

Now however, the terrain served the Grimm, with every gully seeming to hold an Ursa den or a Beowolf pack. Hours before the sun was to set the forest floor was already thrown into an eerie twilight as the sun filtered through the blood red leaves above, casting a crimson pall over everything. It was only broken up when they ventured into the canyons, and even then trees dotted the sloped sides.

The only good news to Blake's mind was the mysterious followers had finally vanished as they entered the canyons, and despite her watchful eye, never reappeared.

* * *

"Well, you got your wish Yang! Happy now?" yelled Jaune as he jumped back before a body the size of a train could crush him. Blood red leaves and dust flew as it crashed down in front of him, allowing him to see his own reflection in the dull white scales, each the size of his own shield.

"Of course! Think of the picture!" Each word was accompanied by a shotgun blast as Yang ran along the top of the monster King Taijitu. The fire dust shells blew fist sized holes out of its hide, and she leaped off it as it twisted to try and throw her, rolling and dashing behind a nearby stump.

Red goop bled from the wounds, but to the giant snake they might as well have been pinpricks, and they did nothing to stop it from reducing the tree to kindling and a stump. Thankfully Yang had already moved on by then to hit her true target as the coil swept through the air, or it would have smashed her just as easily. Now out of range, she was busy dealing with some Ursas that had been drawn to the fight.

"Up there!" shouted Weiss, pointing Myrtenaster at the top of the crevice, more of a canyon based on its size, they were all currently in. Even then the giant snake Grimm seemed to fill most of it, its massive girth not giving them much room to maneuver in.

Nodding, Jaune triggered his jump pack, and with the more recent practice under his belt, sailed up to land right at the edge several stories up without a problem. He ignored the flock of Nevermore of varying sizes that targeted him, even as a hailstorm of razor sharp feathers ranging in size from an inch to a foot shot towards him. Instead he focused on the white head of the snake below him, watching as Pyrrha danced around it with a fierce grin on her face, striking at its eye with Milo whenever it struck forward to bite her.

A glowing glyph appeared between him and the approaching feathers before the first could strike, and with the sound of a gong the entire group abruptly reversed and shot back to their senders, impaling the Nevermores on their own quills. Latching Durandal to his back, he pulled the rod from where it hung at his hip, while at the same time grabbing a small vial of red dust from his belt. He slipped it into the end of the rod before pressing the hidden button, allowing it to expand into a full length lance that glowed with fiery energy.

With a leap off the edge he was falling, point first, towards the white head below as Pyrrha kept it in position. Glyphs appeared below him, and as he plunged through the delicate design, he noted his Heads-Up-Display showed a doubling of his speed. It happened again and again until in the blink of an eye his glowing, dust infused and aura reinforced lance struck the snake. It had the same effect as a nail gun, driving deep through the head and brain, frying tissue as it went, to finally pin the behemoth to the ground.

At the other end of the canyon, Blake and Ren were playing tag with the blinded black head, courtesy of Ruby's sharp shooting. "Now Nora!"

As the Grimm lunged forward, swallowing a Blake clone, Nora's grenade sailed into its mouth and detonated. This final grenade, the third such one, proved too much, and a black tongue the size of a person blew out, smoking as it smashed into a nearby tree. The head swayed, but stayed upright despite being both anosmia and blind; its reptilian brain refusing to die. Then Blake leaped up, anchoring herself to the eye ridge with Gambol Shroud's cleaver sheathe, and emptied an entire clip into the socket. As she jumped free, the head finally crashed to the ground and began to smoke.

"One more for the picture book," cheered Yang even as she blew the head off the final Ursa, one of the many smaller Grimm that had come at its greater brethren's call. "That wraps things up nicely. Nice shooting sis."

"Thanks." Ruby leaped from the tree she had been sitting in, helping her sister in picking off any other Grimm that tried to get the drop on her friends during the fight.

"So, which head do we want to take the picture with?" wondered Pyrrha as she put away her weapons, a wide smile still on her face.

"Oh, oh! I know!" Nora pointed towards the black head. "Serious picture." Then she pointed at the white head. "Funny picture."

"I like it!" announced Yang. "Then take one of me with the Ursa."

"I'm holding out for an Ursa Major personally," remarked Jaune as he finished pulling his lance free and hopped down to join them. "The normal ones are common enough."

"Good point." Yang looked back at the headless and smoking body. "This one seemed spiker when I was fighting it."

"They all do...and I think it was. You blew the spines right off it," Pyrrha pointed out, then literally pointed at where a bone spur had impaled one of the red trees and caused a thick sap to begin to ooze.

"Oh yeah. I'm just that awesome." She pulled out a mirror and began to check her hair in preparation for the picture, preening from the implied praise. Then she paused. "You know, maybe I'm too awesome. To get a decent picture with one of these smaller Grimm, I might need to take it mid fight. Unless…Hey Ren, use your ninja skills and take my picture next time, kay?"

"Sorry, I already have a full time job taking care of one crazy strong girl. Nora, don't drink that!"

"But Ren, victory snack!" Nora stood pouting next to the tree with the impaled Ursa spines.

"It has Grimm in it. Wait till we camp, and then you can have all the sap you want. It'll help you stay awake for watch."

"Is that a selfie stick?" asked Ruby, not quite trusting her eyes at what she saw Weiss pull from her pack, ignoring Ren and Nora's ongoing shenanigans.

"Yes. I knew you plebeians were going to insist on this again, and came prepared. Now, get over here so we can get this over with and go back to our mission." Despite her protests, Weiss joined in on making funny faces with the rest of them when it came time to take the picture with the white head.

* * *

"This one?" asked Jaune.

Pyrrha bent over the harvesting probe, looking at the small lights there. They stubbornly refused to light. "No. Let's try those trees over there."

The trees she pointed too did seem slightly larger than the grove they were currently testing. As they started towards them, they were interrupted by a yell. "Hey, over here. We got some!"

"Never mind, let us go with them instead."

Nodding in agreement with Pyrrha, the two turned towards the direction the yells were coming from.

"You know, you could have just called us," remarked Jaune as he fought his way through a large bush and into the clearing, holding open the passage for Pyrrha who carried the harvester.

"Where's the fun in that?" asked Yang from where she was working on a truly giant tree with Blake.

"Can I have some yet?" Nora was holding the gently humming Mark III sap gatherer and storage device, patent pending to Ruby when she finally got around to sending in the paperwork, as Ren plunged the harvesting needle into the tree.

"No Nora."

"Aw, Renny, why not?"

Tapping the hose slightly to ensure the flow was good, he turned to look at his partner. "Because we don't get drunk on missions Nora. What kind of hunter does that? Grab an extra bottle if you want to try some later."

"But it will make the meal taste so much better!" she protested, imagining the syrupy goodness on the rather bland meal packs. Despite its label, she knew it hadn't been pancakes she was eating that morning.

"Then try one of the small trees." Ren sighed, but knew she wouldn't actually drink the hard stuff. Not on a mission, no matter how she teased about it. But it was part of their game.

"Okay dokey." Nora skipped off to one of the visibly smaller and younger trees, instead of the forest giant they were currently harvesting from.

"Are you okay Jaune? You're being rather...careful with that harvester?" asked Pyrrha, watching her partner eye the harvesting hose like it was a particularly venomous King Taijitu. He hadn't been acting that way earlier when he was carrying it.

"Well, it's not like I think it will explode or anything." He gave a sideways look at the ominously hissing container as it continued to pump sap from the tree.

"Hey!" protested Ruby from where she was working her own machine with Weiss's help. "That only happened with models one and two because I got the pressurization wrong."

Well, that was comforting to know. He very carefully shifted to ensure the maximum amount of armor was between him and the machine. "I said I'm not afraid it's going to explode. Honest. I'm just allergic to the sap."

Suddenly Ruby was next to him, almost making him drop the harvester in surprise. A trail of petals blending into the forest floor led back to where Weiss found herself alone with their harvester.

"You're allergic to the thing that makes up 90% of Vale's sweets and sugary products? I'm so sorry. How do you live like that?" Even as she asked the question, she remembered him eating sweets at their training reviews.

"Once it's refined I'm fine. It's just the raw stuff I'm allergic to." He shivered at the thought of the testing he had to go through to find out...so many needles.

Ruby let out a sigh of relief, and pulled out one of her emergency cookies to offer it to him. No one should have to live without sweets.

He gladly took it, popping open his visor to enjoy the tasty treat as she dashed back over to Weiss. "And this old stuff should hopefully be fine as well, but better safe than sorry."

"Oh good, so you can still get drunk. My plans can continue." A silence fell over them all as one they turned to look at Nora.

"What plans?" demanded Jaune. Any plans Nora had were crazy, and had a fifty-fifty chance of working beyond all expectations, or failing just as hard.

Her hand darted up to cover her mouth. "Oops. Did I say that out loud?"

"Yes," Ren answered from next to her as they all waited.

Everyone continued to stare at Nora, who began to fidget. "Oh, I can't take it. You're too smart for me. I was planning to use some of my extra sap to get you all drunk and get incriminating blackmail on you all. You know, just in case."

"Ignoring everything else wrong with that plan," Blake started, "I have to ask. Just in case of what?" The curiosity would drive her crazy if she didn't.

"You know. Stuff." Nora waved a hand vaguely through the air. "Like making you my personal pancake chefs. Or helping me steal a sloth. Or break someone's knees. You know, stuff."

A light seemed to go on over Yang's head, and she switched from staring at Nora to staring at Ren. "That explains so much about your relationship."

Nora realized where she was looking, and a grin spread across her face as she patted Ren on his head. "Duh, who do you think I was going to have make sure you didn't destroy anything while drunk? And do you really think he'd dye his hair pink willingly? It's to show he's mine!"

Ren just nodded, as Nora cackled next to him, before cracking a slight grin of his own. "To be fair, blackmail from the third grade doesn't really work anymore. I just go along with it because she's Nora."

"That's just what he thinks," stage whispered Nora. "I've trained him well."

"You really did, no wonder he caved into cooking so fast. He's used to blackmail." Now it was Jaune's turn to be stared at. "What? Out of all of us, who would you reeeeally want cooking? If it wasn't Ren, I'd have had to ask for volunteers."

As he said that, he jerked his head slightly towards his partner, who missed the motion. But the rest of the group didn't, and he could see them coming along to his viewpoint. After all, they'd seen Pyrrha's attempt at marshmallows the night before. The thought of that applied to their meals was more than enough to get them to look the other way.

But apparently Ren had just been waiting for this opportunity for revenge. "Ha ha. Laugh now Jaune, but it'll be your turn soon enough. In fact...Hey Nora, why don't you give Pyrrha some tips for training her partner?"

"Oh, good idea Ren. Well, first thing is the blackmail. It's the key to a strong foundation, makes it so they can't get away. But since he's our leader, stuck with us, and we outnumber him, you can skip straight to step two…."

Laughter filled the clearing as they continued to gather the sap, along with a healthy dose of teasing at Jaune's expense from Nora's suggestions. While around them, the red leaves of Forever Fall continued to slowly rain down.

* * *

 **The Creatures of Grimm - King Taijitu**

The King Taijitu is proof that whatever reason the Grimm hunt humans, it is not for food. A two headed snake with no tail, the monster is a living contradiction to the phrase 'Cut off the head and the body dies.'

The truth of the matter is, when one head dies, the beast actually becomes more dangerous, with the remaining head gaining full control of the body, rather than just its own color coordinated section. Many new hunters have been tricked into believing that just because the head is dead, that half of the body is as well, and have been sent flying by a vicious strike from the supposedly dead end for their belief. If left alone long enough, the dead head will eventually heal, no matter the level of damage.

Its tactics vary based on size, with smaller versions, by which I mean ten foot or more, being ambush hunters, lurking in tree tops to drop on unsuspecting prey. As they get larger, this tactic is abandoned for outright attacks with brutal speed, often after letting the prey walk into a loop formed by its own body to corral them before swallowing whole. They are venomous, but the point is mainly moot as the fangs and blood loss will kill you long before the poison.

* * *

 **Scholar's Notes:**

You know, the Cross Continental Communication Towers have got to be one of the best inventions Atlas ever bothered to give the rest of the world. Instant communication from within one to any of the other three towers, despite the distance, is amazing. And whoever says otherwise, or complains about being unable to make a call like that on their Scroll, should have to go back to sending letters with the latest convoy and hoping they actually arrive.

Of course intra-Kingdom communications networks have been expanding with the boosting towers, but outside the walls, those networks are still rare. And they certainly don't exist in the places I'll be traveling to. But at least the Scrolls map and detection features should still work. Nifty things those, bounce their signals against each other to increase their effective range. Not to mention you can locate each other with them. Course, some people fiddle with theirs and deliberately turn that signal off. Don't know why the fools do that, let them be the ones locked in a tomb full of King Taijitu without being able to call for help. That'll get them to turn it back on.

Course, even with the detection and signal boosting off, the walkie-talkie features still work.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** So, welcome to the expanded Forever Fall mission. Hope people are enjoying it so far.

Thanks again to College Fool for all the help.


	12. Chapter 12

"I wish we were camping by the lake again." Yang continued to scrub at her sap covered hands, the sticky substance not wanting to come off and giving her skin a nice pink tinge. "It was nice and warm. This stream's too shallow to do anything with."

"I know," agreed Weiss from her own spot further down the stream. "Maybe there is something to the rumors of fire dust in the area after all. It felt glorious."

"Of course a Schnee would think dust was the answer." And they were both wrong. The only water Blake liked was the nice climate controlled kind from showers. Living at Beacon had spoiled her to cold showers and the outdoors; she was coming to love the little luxuries of life.

"Hmph," sniffed Weiss in disdain. "Well excuse me for wanting to know more about the world than just assuming the gods did it like some superstitious peasant."

"Maybe it's run off heated by the mountain?" Ruby pointed through a gap in the trees where the steep slopes of the mountains could be seen, sparse red trees decorating their black sides like some type of rash.

"Could be," agreed Jaune from where he was cleaning the breakfast dishes off further downstream. "The area's volcanic, and these gullies are the perfect channel. I'm sure we'll see it later today."

"Great," moaned Yang. "No showers but the natural kind."

"I thought you'd appreciate that Yang."

Yang gave her partner a curious look. "Why?"

"Well, you just washed your hair in the same stream I did the dishes in last night. Not to mention that birds and fish and deer and raccoons and squirrels all use it to-"

"Lalalala, can't hear you!" claimed Yang as she covered her ears, blocking out her partner.

The morning quickly turned grey and muggy, clouds covering the sun. And it only got darker as the clouds grew thicker, making the forest floor as black as night and necessitating flashlights. "And now it's raining."

"How can you tell?" asked Jaune as he tried to see through the gloom, momentarily turning his flashlight's beam upward to play it over the blood red ceiling of leaves.

"Listen. You can hear it on the leaves." With a shudder of disgust Blake reached into her bag and pulled out a poncho she'd stored in an easy to reach location just for this occasion, pulling it around herself.

"What's wrong, afraid of a little water?" teased Yang, even as her hair continued to frizz from the humidity. "We're perfectly fine under the trees."

"That's what you think. Just wait and see. And no, I'm not afraid of water, I just don't like getting wet unless I plan on it." Blake didn't mention how enough water would make her ribbon sag, revealing her ears and her heritage to the world. She'd already taken a risk earlier, stopping Ruby from stepping into a hole her flashlight had missed, but that she'd seen with her superior night vision.

Sure enough, Blake was right, and thin streams of water began to fall down from above. Coincidence, luck, or fate, one such stream dropped right down the back of Yang's shirt, prompting a smug grin from Blake.

Stoically ignoring it, and pretending she hadn't just done a little dance as the cold water slithered down her spine, Yang turned to the one person that didn't look the least perturbed by the falling water. "You're not going to rust up on us, are you?"

"Please, this is a dust alloy blend. This will rust the same time Ember Celica does. And in the meantime, I'm snug and very, very dry." He made a point of deliberately stepping under one of the water streams, allowing it to cascade down his armor.

"I'm glad the new seals are working out. Any issues?" asked Ruby, practically skipping over and ignoring the rain sliding off her hood. Grabbing his arm she pulled him down so she could inspect the seam between the gorget, helmet, and pauldrons.

He shook his head as she released him. "Nope, working perfectly. Thanks for the suggestion on that by the way."

"I use the same material in part of Crescent Rose, to help keep the mecha-shift mechanism dry from the gun oil, so I knew it would hold up," she explained as she reached back to pat her beloved weapon.

"We should move up to the edges of the crevices soon. It'll be a bit tougher going, but with the way this rain is falling, they might flood." As if to illustrate Pyrrha's point, Weiss's next step took her into a puddle deep enough to swallow her whole foot, high heels and all.

Jaune nodded, and began to play his light around again. "Right. Let's take a minute, get ready for the rain before it really starts. There looks to be a place we can climb up just ahead."

Ren nodded, reaching into his own bag to pull out two ponchos, one pink and one green. The pink one of course went to Nora. But none of the other girls were moving. Not even Weiss, whose white shirt was starting to show her black chemise underneath. A horrible thought struck Jaune. "Didn't you all bring coats or something?"

Yang shrugged. "Didn't expect it to rain."

"And you never checked the weather?"

"Nope," Ruby shook her head. Then again, besides Blake she was the driest on the team, her cloak apparently waterproof enough that the droplets were just sliding off. Jaune noticed she'd fastened another clasp, fashioned like a cross, lower down the cloak, holding it around her better.

"What about Blake?" She had a poncho, surely she knew the weather.

"Yeah, what about Blake?" Yang turned toward her partner. "How come you didn't warn us? Don't you care about your teammates?" She shivered exaggeratedly, making a show of rubbing her arms to stay warm.

"I thought you'd check," answered Blake, sounding defensive. "It's common sense. And I always have this with me. I told you, I don't like getting wet."

Setting his bag down, Jaune rummaged around in it, pulling free a poncho. "I only have the one. I'd offer you my sweatshirt, but I didn't pack it for the trip."

He handed the covering over to Weiss, between her and Yang it was clear who he'd be giving it to. Though he'd never admit it, the thought of giving it to Yang just to see how Weiss's outfit would look in an hour did pass his mind. But he banished it before he could give in.

"Thank you Jaune." She sounded truly grateful as she pulled on the blue plastic poncho, its cheap material contrasting sharply with her elegant outfit. Yet she made it work as she pulled the hood up, tucking her ponytail behind her. It seemed to take the edge of her normally sharp look, and Jaune found himself staring.

"Hey, what about me?" protested Yang, but there was no real bite or anger in her words, it was more for form's sake. Then her tone changed, "I guess I'll just Yang in there until the rain stops."

A snort escaped Yang's lips even as the others groaned at the pun. Then pink filled her vision. Reaching up, she pulled a poncho free.

"I always pack a spare," explained Ren. "It's Nora."

* * *

"What was that?"

"I think we've established Blake, that you have better hearing than us. What is it?" demanded Weiss.

Everyone was grumpier now. The rain had picked up, becoming a downpour that cut through the trees, and they were forced to hike along the high ground where the tree and ground cover was thicker, making the going slower and muddier. As the water rose in the crevices, so had tempers, until everyone walked along in a sullen silence, soaked and grumpy from having to ford through the flooded streams. Despite their earlier start, they'd covered much less ground

Blake paused, head cocked to the side in a way that oddly reminded Jaune of a dog. Then she seemed to come to a realization and pulled out her scroll. It was emitting static, harsh cracks and pops. It shouldn't have been doing that, she'd left it off...unless... "The emergency channel!"

Everyone else grabbed for their scrolls, pulling them free. The signal was faint from the storm, cutting in and out, and Jaune guessed the only reason they were even able to pick it up was because they were on the top of a ridge.

"Can you make anything out?" asked Pyrrha.

As if in answer to her question the channel cleared for a brief second, a single word cutting through clearly. "Help."

"Did anyone get a read on it?" demanded Ruby, her tone tense, utterly unlike her normal cheerful self.

No one answered, eyeing their maps, trying to see if there was even a hint of a dot. But they stayed blank. That seemed to galvanize Ruby into action. "There, that ridge over there. It looks to be the highest. We can try and see if we can get a signal there. If not, we leave our stuff and spread out, try to pick it up. Stay in range of at least one person, so we can all get back together."

They split up, dashing from high point to high point, leaping streams and crevices, searching for a signal. It was Ren that found it, shouting over the radio "Its back towards our old camp!"

His message was passed between them as they converged back together, running towards their camp by the lake. As they got closer, Blake spoke up. "Gun fire. Lots of gunfire. And screaming. It must be the people that followed us."

"It has to be other students," suggested Ren as he wiped some water from his eyes. "I mean, what's the chance we'd run into someone else so close to where we camped the first night?"

"HELP!" The scream's high pitch, filled with absolute terror, cut through the rain before it was drowned out by a peal of thunder. Weapons were pulled free as they dashed along the final crest to the valley where their old camp site was.

The area was almost unrecognizable in the pouring rain. The ridge they'd camped on was an island surrounded by dark, muddy water that stirred ominously, driven by more than the rivers of water pouring into it from the flash flood filled crevices. Lightning briefly illuminated the scene, showing the four figures that stood on the island. Team Cardinal were back to back and staring out at the water with their weapons raised. Around them were the shredded and half sunken remains of tents and other camping supplies.

The moment the four saw the two teams approaching, they started to call for help even louder. "Help us!" "It's in the water!" "Our scrolls aren't working!" "You have to help, Jaune!"

"What's in the water?" shouted back Yang, her voice barely heard over the pouring rain as she focused on the most important bit they'd yelled.

All four members of Cardinal had turned to face their rescuers, and as they did the water behind them bubbled ominously. "There's a giant Grimm in the water. It looks like a crocodile!"

"No, an alligator!" argued Sky as he eyed the water in front of them nervously for a glint of teeth or red eyes.

Dove was doing the same next to his partner. "Crocodile! Don't you pay any attention at all? Look at its teeth!"

"Not helping," snapped Cardin, cutting off his bickering teammates. Next to him his mohawked teammate froze as a red rope shot from the muddy water and stuck to his arm. Cardin noticed the movement in the corner of his eye as Russel was dragged slowly towards the water's edge, utterly unable to move, to even cry for help.

"Shit, Anura!" Grabbing Russel he gave a mighty heave, pulling the boy back to the slightly firmer ground he was standing on, and yanking a frog shaped Grimm from the water in the process. It croaked in protest, paralyzing tongue snaking its way back into its mouth as it let go of Russel. Before it could act, a swing of Cardin's mace smashed its white skull in. Kicking the smoking body back into the water Cardin turned to look at Russel, who Sky was busy shaking.

Dove turned to look at their leader. "He'll be fine in a second."

Nodding, Cardin focused on the two other teams, and the more than twenty yards of water separating them. "There's a monster Grimm in there somewhere. It's been playing with us, keeping us here as the water rose. I managed to half blind it earlier."

"Sounds like a Sobek. They're nasty, even the small ones." Yang's words were sparking Jaune's memory. He knew the basic facts about them, his mother's book had been drilled into his head. But the focus had always been on the more local Grimm. Sobeks were rare locally, concentrated more in Vacuo.

"Tough, armored, and can stay down under the water indefinitely. Weaknesses include the eyes and roof of the mouth," Blake recited from memory as she kept a close eye on the water. "They guard those carefully though."

A head the size of a person surfaced, the typical black Grimm flesh more of a grey that blended perfectly in with the water it rose from. The flattened Anura looked tiny in its massive jaws, surrounded by those white teeth. With a crunch the jaws closed, the dog sized frog Grimm vanishing with barely a swallow. As they watched one scarred red eye began to regenerate, and the beast slipped beneath the water once again. In the darkness of the evening and rain, the final bit of it visible was its gleaming white teeth, before those too disappeared beneath the muddy waters.

"Oh yeah, and they can heal by cannibalizing other Grimm," added Yang mock cheerfully.

"So, to sum up, water filled with both paralyzing and man eating Grimm between us and an island filled with assholes." Yang clenched her hands, Ember Celica sliding down to engulf them in preparation for a Grimm assault. But they all seemed focused on the team in the water, ignoring the prey on the edges.

"Yup," Ruby popped the p sound as she kept watch on the water, trying to pick out which swirls were natural, which were from the ruined camp site, and which were from the monsters within.

"Are you sure we have to save them?" asked Blake, only half joking.

"Blake!" chided Ruby, even as she fired, an Anura dying a second later. It quickly disappeared, being sucked below the water with a glimmer of white teeth, a reminder of the giant monster patrolling beneath the surface.

Looking at the shrinking island where team Cardinal was fighting off a new way of croaking Anura, Jaune nodded. "Unfortunately. So, anyone have a plan? I could get them, but it would have to be one at a time..."

"And the last one is likely to get picked off," Ruby finished Jaune's thought as she aimed her sniper rifle again, this time blowing the tongue off an Anura before it could tag and freeze one of the embattled boys. Her shot continued on to kill another Anura, exploding out the back of its skull. What made it even more impressive was the fact the rain was still pouring down like a solid wall, cutting down visibility almost completely.

"Yeah." With all the Grimm focused on the island, there was nothing he could do but wait until they had a plan.

"I might also be able to get them," offered Pyrrha as she looked at the stranded team. "But I would be unable to get the mohawked one. Perhaps if you get him first Jaune?"

"No, I can freeze them a bridge. That's much easier," announced Weiss as she stepped forward, Myrtenaster's cylinder spinning to settle on her favored ice dust. Plunging it tip first into the water she triggered some of the stored dust, and in a blast of blue and white a path of ice formed to the shrinking island.

"Hey!" protested Russel as his feet were temporarily frozen to the muddy ground, once more immobilizing him.

Before Team Cardinal even had a chance to think about running to safety, the bridge began to shake as a muted roar came from below the water.

"I think you made smiley angry," pointed out Yang when a massive crack suddenly appeared in the bridge.

The boys watched as their lifeline to safety shattered. The shards were pushed to the side as a boney back surfaced, giving a hint at the beast's true size. A white tail whipped through the air, Sky just managing to duck beneath it, before it plunged back into the water, lashing out and further splintering the shattered pieces of the bridge. Within moments the only sign there'd ever been safe passage over the dark water was a few bits of floating ice in a rapidly dispersing sea of slush.

"Well, that didn't go as planned," said Weiss, a bit stunned at how fast her bridge had just disintegrated. She had to have created it partially on the monster for it to be able to break it that fast, right? There was no way it was strong enough to just crush it like that without it being weakened…it had to be debris in the water or something destabilizing it.

With another roar the beast surfaced, not facing the teams on shore, but rather the small spit of land. As more and more of it rose from the water, bits of the remaining ice sluiced down its armored sides like miniature versions of the canyons surrounding them.

"Get ready to make a jump for it," shouted Cardin as he eyed the beast. Its head and front legs were barely out of the water and it was already threatening to push them off the island. Better to jump now and one of them possibly make it then stay there and die for sure

Ruby's rifle barked, and the beast flinched back as her shot gouged a chunk out of the protective ridge above its eye, giving the boys on the island an extra second of time. "Jaune, Nora! Head over there and keep it busy. Pyrrha, help me with covering fire. They need to all get back here at once or the Sobek will get them. Weiss, can you set up some glyphs, give Cardinal a boost to jump over here?"

"Yes, but it will take a few moments to get it right. I don't want them to _accidentally_ miss." She snorted at the thought of throwing them clear over the ridge they walked on and into a flooded canyon on the other side.

"Good. We'll keep the Anuras off long enough for it to work." She let off another shot, piercing a red eye that was just visible above the water and watching those on the island. The broken remains of one of the frog Grimm floated to the surface a second later. Around her, the rest of them continued to pepper the armored back of the giant Sobek with everything they had, but it ignored them. Its head struck out to swallow an Anura, and the regeneration began to heal any damage they did manage. But it bought them time to put Ruby's plan into effect.

Jaune blasted up, holding Nora in his arms, until they were above the monsters head. Then he threw her up. A light boost carried him forward, and slowed his descent just enough that when he dropped in front of its head, splattering Dove and Cardin with mud in the process, he didn't sink down to his knees. The Sobek eyed him and a mouth large enough to swallow him in one bite slowly opened, giving him a perfect view of its rows and rows of teeth, and the blood red tongue nestled among them.

Then Nora slammed into it from above hard enough to force its back out of the water like some demented seesaw, embedding its head into the mud and rock of the island. "Yes, one more for the checklist!"

Out of the corner of his visor Jaune could just make out a glyph slowly spinning into existence, its light brilliant in the darkness, before he refocused on the problem in front of him. "Help cover Nora. She's more exposed than the rest of us to the Anuras."

He left the order open on purpose; he didn't care which of them guarded her side just that one of them did. And if none of them stepped up, he was perfectly happy to take Nora and leave; he wasn't risking her to a combo shot from an Anura and the Sobek.

But then Dove stepped up to her side, sword raised, and Jaune was suddenly back in childhood, a thousand imaginary fights playing before his mind. It was supposed to be like this, they'd planned it out. The two of them against the world, saving the Kingdoms one Grimm at a time, earning fame and fortune.

Even when he'd chosen not to go to Signal, had picked working with his Dad, they'd still planned to make it work. After all, they had Beacon together, and the breaks between semesters. So they said they'd meet up for a spar once Dove got back; but it wasn't the fight either of them had been expecting.

Maybe he'd betrayed their dreams first by picking his father's training over Signal with his friend. Or maybe it would have happened regardless. But, as they both struck out, blocking tongues and slicing Grimm, Jaune couldn't help but see the smiling face of his old friend, wooden sword in hand, overlaid on the Dove of today.

With a great sucking sound like the world's biggest boot being pulled from quicksand, the greater Sobek pried its head from the mud. This time there was no hiss, no growl, it simply struck out, jaws half opened. This was no intimidation tactic, it had them open just enough to grab one of them, but not enough to give them a clear shot at its weaker mouth roof or throat.

Nora met it with a hammer blow, but several tons of enraged Grimm was tough to move, even with explosions, and all she managed to do was block it from moving forward. Allowing a tongue to slide harmlessly off his armor, Jaune cut off the offending organ before stabbing out with his great sword to impale another frog. Stepping forward to bodily block her side from the water, he resumed his guard. Behind Nora a blast of flame temporarily dried out the mud as Cardin triggered his mace's fire dust to blow a group of three backward.

"It's ready!" came Weiss's yell from a crossed the water. "Make sure you land in the center of it!"

"You heard the lady, you two back there, go." Blocking another set of tongues that shot out at Nora's legs with a sweep of his sword, even as a third wrapped around his leg and tried to upset his balance, Jaune kept a careful eye on the duel between his teammate and the Sobek. Every lunge it made was countered with a hammer blow as Nora fearlessly stood her ground and refused to budge an inch, the pink flashes of her grenades revealing her fierce grin. But Jaune could see she wouldn't be able to keep it up for long. Each strike shifted her footing, threatening to send her to her knees in the slippery mud.

Russel and Sky did as told without any argument, pushing aside Dove who had retreated back towards the glyph, more than happy to escape the shrinking island. It blasted them perfectly across the water to the higher ground of the valleys side where another glyph waited to slow them down and deposit them gently next to the other students. Seeing its prey escape, the Sobek twisted even as it took another bite at Nora, wrapping its body and tail around the island like a hideous mockery of a nesting crocodile. Weiss was forced to let the glyph go, it's light winking out, before the scaly hide had a chance to hit it and propel the Sobek over to them.

"Well shit."

Now a literal wall of Grimm flesh was between them and the closest shore. On the bright side, at least the frogs couldn't come from there, even if the Sobek was choosing to ignore all of Dove's attempts at stabbing it right where the glyph had been, despite the shallow gashes they were leaving. On the other hand, now all the frogs were coming from the other side. All the frogs. It almost looked like they could walk to the opposite shore on the Anura's backs.

A hard hit left Dove's sword blade buried in the Sobek's flank before a twitch of the leg knocked him back and pulled his weapon free of his hands, putting it out of reach. "Damn!"

But instead of lunging for it, Dove fell back, letting his weapon wave in front of them as the Sobek moved. "We're dead, dead!"

Jaune recognized the sword, and reached out to grab it as it went past. The bronze colored weapon was supposed to be part of a set, he and Dove had planned it out. He'd have his super version of Crocea Mors, gun included since guns were awesome and who wouldn't want one in a weapon? And Dove would have his set of swords, from a claymore down to a dagger, the different lengths and caliber guns meant to be the pinions in his name. Or maybe just one sword that could shift lengths. Dove had never quite decided. But, with their weapons, together they'd fight crime. Or Grimm.

Instead, Dove was panicking, not even trying to take the sword back, as Cardin grabbed his shoulder, shaking him. "Shut up Dove. Grab your sword and try not to be useless."

Snatching the weapon from Jaune, Cardin thrust it back into the hands of his near hysterical teammate. Jaune could only shake his head as Dove nearly fumbled and dropped it again. Cardin might be a bully, but at least he fought.

It was a lost cause to stay here, they had to get off the island. Desperately, Jaune tried to think of something that wouldn't leave one of them alone on a rapidly flooding island surrounded by Grimm. They had to take some of them out somehow, or they'd end up fighting the horde on land, and the rest of the group wasn't as well covered as they currently were. All it would take would be one tongue at the wrong time in a confused melee, and the Sobek would pounce…

And suddenly inspiration struck as lightning crackled through the sky above, the boom of thunder sounding before the flash had even faded from vision. The storm had to be right overhead.

"Change of plan. Guys, get ready to catch them!" Jaune shouted to be heard over the rain and Grimm, receiving a nod from the people on shore.

Attaching Durandal to his back in one smooth, well-practiced motion, Jaune drew his lance, grabbing a dust vial from his belt. Slamming it home, he tossed the now crackling lance towards Nora, and she grabbed it, heedless of the fact arcs of electricity were crawling over her hands. "The water!"

"Ha! I Have-" she was interrupted part way through as lightning poured from the sky, tearing down the length of the upraised length even as the thunder seemed to shake the very air.

"The Power!" She finished, practically glowing with energy, stray arcs electricity crackled around her. The spear was a brilliant white, the metal completely invisible beneath the coruscating field of lighting. Then she thrust it into the water.

The water boiled as raw energy surged and rebounded through it. Even being on the island with his insulated armor, Jaune could still feel it eating away at his aura. All around them Anuras thrashed and seizured in the crackling liquid, turning the water to foam and stirring up even more mud as the Sobek bellowed in agony and rolled around.

Just as quickly as it came, the power vanished, leaving a quickly vanishing cloud of steam behind. "Still have enough juice to throw them?"

"I'm always strong enough to throw crap around." Hopping over the still convulsing tail of the Sobek, Nora landed next to the two Cardinal members, and grabbed each by the back of their shirts.

"Wait, what are you dooooiinng?!" Dove's demand trailed off into a scream as Nora threw him and Cardin over the water and into the waiting glyph on shore as easily as someone else might throw a pillow. And if she just happened to undershoot with them both so they plowed face first through the mud on the bank, instead of landing gently on the glyph, no one planned to say anything. Of course, even if her aim had been perfect, and it actually had in her mind, it wouldn't have mattered as the glyph winked out a second before they could hit.

As Jaune pulled his lance from the water a few final sparks jumped from the tip, the last remnants of the dust vial. But before he could do anything to the Sobek it vanished, slithering into the muddy water and disappearing from sight, right towards the gently smoking Anura corpses. That was their sign it was time to go. "Right, that's it."

Scooping up his teammate, Jaune activated his jump pack, shooting over to the safety of the shore. The moment he touched down, Nora leaped from his arms. "Did you see Ren? Another item off my list. But my bucket list, not my hammer list. Though I did one of those too."

Cardin had already gotten back to his feet, and was staring at the now cratered and ruined spit of land in the lake, hand clenching and unclenching on his mace. The ruined tents weren't even visible anymore, having got batted aside in the fight and swallowed by the muddy water. And the rest of the supplies had probably been swept downriver, or into the lake proper, leaving them with only whatever they had on them.

"What are we supposed to do now?" complained Sky as he looked at where his teammate was looking. "That was all our stuff."

Russel looked up from where he was fingering his daggers and their mostly empty vials. "Yeah, my dust and clothes are gone. Can I get some of yours?" The way he was staring at Weiss and her white outfit, now soaked through even with the poncho, made it clear he wasn't asking for dust.

"Why you slimy ungrateful little-" Whatever else Weiss was going to say was cut off as a peal of thunder sounded, lighting flashing to reveal the Sobek lunging from the water with startling speed. Its mouth was wide open to grab Cardin and pull him into the depths of the water, a sure death sentence. They'd underestimated it, it hadn't been going after the Grimm corpses to heal after all.

Nora pushed by Jaune, ready for a rematch. "Got it!"

"No!" screamed Blake and Yang together, already darting towards the girl as they realized she was preparing, not to block the hit, but to catch the closing jaws.

Acting without thinking, Jaune threw himself forward. He trusted Nora to catch the monster, but he also trusted Yang and Blake. If they thought something was up, something was up. As the jaws swept in at them, Jaune did the only thing he could and activated his semblance. There was white and the Sobek jerked, front legs shaking, giving Blake the time she needed to yank all three backwards even as Yang pounded a volley of shots into the top of its jaw. It convulsed as the blasts struck home, reflexively snapping its mouth closed on empty air.

But Yang wasn't done yet, and grabbed it by its jaws, ignoring the stay teeth poking out, and held them closed. "Ruby, Pyrrha, now!"

But before she was even finished yelling a cascade of shots sounded out, and both of the animal's eyes exploded as a fusillade of dust rounds from no less than four guns slammed into them. That seemed to be enough for it, and it collapsed into the mud.

"Is it dead?" asked Dove from where he was hiding behind Pyrrha, face and armor smeared with mud. Ever so slowly the corpse started to smoke.

"Yup, it's dead." Yang nudged it with her foot, for good measure, making sure it didn't stir.

Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief at her announcement, slumping in exhaustion and ignoring the rain still pouring down on them. "What now?"

"Picture obviously," answered Yang, standing up from under her own tree. "No way we're letting this one go to waste."

"It's got to be at least ten tons," guessed Blake. "That's above the average weight for a Greater Sobek. And their bite force is over seven tons of pressure." That last bit was directed at Nora.

"Oh," Nora answered softly from her rock seat as the thought of just how close she'd come to being Grimm food flitted through her head. Then another thought struck her. "I guess trying to catch it was a bad idea. But Jaune, how'd you manage to stop it?"

"Semblance. I'll tell you all later." He jerked his head in the direction of the clumped together Team Cardinal, and the others nodded in understanding.

Yang spoke up. "I told you, we're not missing a chance at another awesome photo. We're soaked already, my hair can't get any worse, so we are going to get the absolute best set of pictures possible! That means dragging this sucker from the water. You!" She glared at Team Cardinal. "You're helping us move this thing! Weiss, spin up those glyphs."

Before they started dragging it out, Jaune extended his collapsed lance again, hopping on the back of the beast and using it to go deeper into the water. Stretching, he managed to spear an Anura and pulled it back towards them. Smiling, he tossed the frog over to Nora. "For the picture."

It was a hard task, and by the end they were coated in mud up to their knees, but they succeeded, and the full length of the giant monster was on land. Its head alone came up past Ruby's torso, and a guess put it at well over forty feet long.

"You, you're taking the picture!" Weiss thrust her scroll into Russel's hands. "I assume you're competent enough to manage that?"

Russel looked like he wanted to say something, but cowered back at the glare Weiss shot him. They quickly got situated, ignoring the pouring rain, with Ruby and Weiss sitting on its back while Nora held the Anura like it was a pet dog as the others lined up next to it. That was one of several they took. And if Russel thought the first glare she'd sent him was bad, it had nothing on the collective one his team received when they tried to get in a picture. It could have frozen the lake all over again. Finally though, they stopped, and Weiss took the scroll back from Russel, examining the pictures. She gave a small sniff of disdain before pronouncing. "Adequate."

"All right, if we walk about half a mile that way," Jaune gestured along the high ground, partially covered in the red trees, "We can pick up our stuff on the way and be able to find a decent place to camp. Can't make it to the original place we planned on tonight, but the map had a place that the cover looked thick enough, and the ground high enough, to help with the rain. But it won't be dry."

"I feel like I'm never going to be dry," muttered Yang, as she tried to squeeze some of the water from her hair. Still, she didn't regret the picture, or the fact her boots were covered in mud. They'd clean eventually, and her Dad would freak at the picture.

"Hey, what about us?" demanded Cardin, striding over with his team following behind.

"What about you?" Weiss said, her voice tone making it clear she thought of them as just slightly above the Grimm they'd finished slaying, and with the photos done, so was their use.

"All our stuff, our tents, food, spare ammo, it's all gone now." Indeed, the entire spit of land was now gone, a few scraps of floating debris the only sign of the previous hill.

"So?" asked Blake rather bluntly, sick of dealing with the group of jerks on top of being wet. "How is that our problem?"

"You can't just leave us here," protested Dove. Seeing the hard looks the others were still giving his team, he turned towards Jaune. "We were friends."

"Were being the key word. Besides, what were you doing out here anyway?"

The four members of Cardinal looked at each other, shifting in place, before Cardin spoke. "Following you. We heard what you said on the plane, and Sky managed to hack your scroll. It sounded like you had a good plan, so we headed for the 'X'"

"Well, that solves the one mystery. Now, what do we do with them?" asked Yang.

Nora smirked slightly as she adjusted her position on the Sobek. "They still have their weapons and can hunt, they'll be fine."

"I don't know about that Nora." Ren gave a slow shake of his head, wet bangs clinging to his face. "You're supposed to be smarter than whatever you try and hunt; I think they'd have trouble catching their namesake."

"Hey, we're right here!" protested Sky.

"Surely you have to give them some credit." Everyone turned to Pyrrha who had an innocent look on her face. "They won't starve."

"See, someone respects us," whispered Russell. "Ooof!"

Withdrawing his elbow from his teammate's side, Sky whispered back, "Quiet you idiot; that means she's trying to get us left here."

"They can hit stationary targets after all, and there are plenty of trees around."

"Maybe, but are you sure all that sugar would be good for them? I mean, they already could stand to lose a few pounds. Two days of nothing but syrup won't help with that pudge." Yang was purposefully looking at Dove as she spoke.

Jaune stayed silent as his friends harassed Cardinal, mostly focusing on Dove, even as Cardin stood there in silence through the occasional insult. He knew that'd been angry on his behalf, but to see them actually follow through with it was another thing entirely. In fact, he was almost sure they weren't entirely joking about leaving Cardinal, and if he asked, they would.

But they were in woods full of Grimm, and their showing had been rather pathetic, so there was a high chance of them getting injured at best. Yet he still couldn't manage to find any sympathy in himself for them. They were alive, they had weapons. He'd survived in the woods with far less; did they really need any more help?

Thankfully, he didn't have to make the decision.

"Alright, enough everyone. Cardinals coming with us, that's final. " Ruby gave a decisive nod, ending the banter. Then she paused, a small smirk growing across her face. "It's not good to leave children alone in the woods after all."

Wisely, CRDL stayed silent at this final jab, though Cardin tightened the grip on his mace.

* * *

The trip back to their packs was done in silence, excepting the now rarer rumble of thunder. There they picked up their bags and sap containers again, before continuing on with their flashlights out. But finally they reached the higher ridge from their map, the thicker trees on it reducing the rain to a heavy mist falling from the leaves.

And beneath those trees, two foes did battle. "Rock!" "Paper!"

"Ha! I win, but you're getting better Ruby. I almost missed you trying to change halfway. But the petal gave you away."

"It could have been a leaf!" protested Ruby, but there was no heart in it. "We'll set up camp."

"And we'll check the perimeter for Grimm." The two teams split up, leaving Cardinal standing there awkwardly.

Juniper started their patrol around the campsite, paying special attention for any signs Grimm might have nests or lairs in the area. Nora poked a suspicious looking branch to make sure it wasn't hosting a Nevermore nest, before turning to look at Jaune. "So, what was that back there?"

"What was what?" Jaune looked up from the gully, now a stream, he was standing over.

"With the Sobek. Before it could munch me, you did something to it."

"Oh, that was my semblance, part of it at least."

"Ooooo, spill the beans then! What'cha do?" Giving the tree a final kick and making sure nothing moved, Nora started to meander towards Jaune. Ren and Pyrrha were working their way over as well, curious as to what he had to say.

It turned out not to be much. "It's not exactly that complicated in the basics, but do you mind if we wait till our next joint practice so I can tell RWBY as well? I figure after this trip they deserve to know as well."

"Fair enough," answered Ren, putting a hand over Nora's mouth before she could say anything. "But don't think it means I'll be telling my semblance any time soon. Some of us like having secrets."

Finally managing to pull Ren's hand away from her mouth, Nora nodded. "It adds to his ninjaness."

"You look like you have something else you want to say Jaune." How Pyrrha knew what he was thinking was a mystery to him; his helmet hid his face. But she was right.

"Well, I have a favor to ask from you all. Would you mind if Ren stayed in your tent tonight? I know it'll be a tight squeeze, but I want to give Cardinal the tent for the night."

When he'd picked out their tents for the trip, he'd gone with the ones the list recommended, since he knew they were good all-purpose ones. And he'd been right, they'd easily fit two people apiece and their gear. Three would be pushing it though, and trying to fit four people in one tent would make for an uncomfortable night. They'd need to sit up all night to manage it if they wanted their gear in with them. Then again, Cardinal didn't exactly have anything left, so maybe they could make it work.

"Ignoring everything else wrong with that, let's start with the easiest thing. Where do you plan to stay?" asked Ren. He'd seen the same logistical problem Jaune had.

"I'll use my tarps and lance to rig up a shelter, I've done it before. With my armor it's more to keep the rain off my face then anything." It was never the most comfortable, but as an emergency shelter, or a lightweight one when he didn't have the space to carry a full tent, it worked.

"Which means you plan to spend the entire night sleeping in your armor," pointed out Pyrrha in concern for her partner. She knew Ren slept in his combat outfit, but then Ren's wasn't over thirty pounds of metal.

"It'll be fine for two nights. Then when we get back to school I'll get some good rest. And a shower."

"That doesn't answer the question of why though. Why are you giving up a tent and a good night's sleep for them? They've been nothing but a pain, and are ungrateful to boot." As Ren said that, they could hear Cardinal complaining from the camp about something or other now that they were near enough.

"I did some thinking as we were walking. And to be honest, I was almost ready to ask you all to leave them back at the lake. That's why I didn't say anything earlier. And also, thank you for that. It meant a lot to hear you say those things."

"Well, you said we couldn't' break their legs, so we had to settle with insults and throwing mud on them," interrupted Nora.

"So, why go from wishing to leave them to offering assistance above what's necessary?"

"Part of the oaths I want to swear involve helping the helpless, and protecting the weak."

"That hardly describes CRDL," pointed out Pyrrha. "They'll be cold and wet, but they won't starve or be killed by Grimm if they sleep under the trees. Or you could give them your tarp and take the tent instead."

"I know. But I want to go beyond the wording of the oaths, to the spirit of them. Even when I messed up, you all were there for me, helped me and gave me another chance. Maybe Cardinal just needs the same thing. If it works, we've made a group of assholes into slightly better people, and if it doesn't, I only lose out on two nights of sleep." There was another reason too, but he didn't want to share it, not until he came to grips with it himself.

"You realize you already gave them that chance when you made the bet with Cardin, and he broke it? That would have been his chance to turn his ways around."

Slumping back onto his rock, Jaune gave a shrug. "Yeah, it's stupid, I know. Odds are they'll go back to their ways as soon as we get to Beacon, considering how they're acting now. But I want to try. If for no other reason than Dove used to be a friend. That's why I'm not trying to order you to do it, but asking."

Jaune looked around at his team members as he finished his plea, looking to see some sign of what they might think.

Ren eyed him back evenly for a moment, face blank, before he gave a small nod. "Alright. I don't think in the middle of Grimm filled woods is the time for this. But I also don't see how it could work anywhere else. But you get cooking duty for the next two snack nights. And I reserve the right to say I told you so later on if Cardinal keeps being dicks."

"And I want pancakes, not normal ones either. I want blueberry and almond and red sap and bacon," Nora tacked on her own demand.

"Bacon pancakes? Really?" Nora just nodded. So Jaune turned to Pyrrha, and asked, half-jokingly, "And any demands from you?"

"Yes actually," she answered, making him start in surprise. She'd usually gone along with his plans, something he'd started to take for granted. "It's my job as your partner to watch out for you. That includes stopping you from stupid choices. If it was just us out here, I would say no... But Team RWBY is here to help cover us and has watch tonight. So if you truly wish to sleep in the cold and damp, that's your choice. But I wish for a veto for the next time you wish to do something stupid. And a spar; one where neither of us will be holding back."

Jaune gave a slow nod. "Well, I think I can agree to your demands."

As they got closer to the camp, the few Grimm hanging around the area eliminated with extreme prejudice, the shouting got louder, with Cardin's and Weiss's the clearest.

"We helped you put them up!"

"Only because we asked you to! Otherwise you would have just kept standing around!"

Juniper stepped into a standoff. On one side was Team RWBY and the tents, on the other was Team Cardinal.

Seeing the new comers, Cardin turned towards them. "They're crazy. Maybe you can talk some sense into them."

Jaune ignored him to focus on Weiss. "What happened?"

"They keep demanding we give them a tent," replied Weiss, still glaring at Cardin.

"They're big enough you all can share," shot back Cardin, looming over the much smaller girl.

But Weiss didn't let the over a foot of height difference intimidate her, striking out with her finger like it was Myrtenaster and poking him in the chest. . "No you dunce! I have said, multiple times, that those are our tents. As in, all the tents we brought. There are no more tents. Team Juniper does not have more tents. The only other tents for miles around are at the bottom of the lake. We have food for you. But. No. More. Tents!"

"Then where are we supposed to sleep?" asked Sky.

"You assume at this point I still care," replied Weiss, before turning and ducking into her own tent.

"But-" started Russel, only to get cut off.

"We saved you, we let you follow us. There's food. And no Grimm will get you here." With that Blake stepped into her tent, Yang following. Cardinal as one turned to Ruby, only to see her red cape disappearing into the flaps, leaving them alone with Juniper.

"Come on Jaune, you can't just leave us out here? Wouldn't that violate your code or something?" demanded Dove as he turned to look at his old friend.

Jaune gave an easy shrug. "Maybe, I'm sure there's something in it about how I'm supposed to kill my enemies, not offer then a bed and food."

He waited a beat as Cardinal took a nervous step backward, before continuing. "We only brought tents to share, so even if it was my choice, it would still be up to my team. Thankfully for you, they agreed that not even you deserve to sleep in the rain and mud."

Jaune pointed to his and Ren's tent. "You can have that one in a minute."

Putting his bag in the tent to keep it out of the rain while he worked, he pulled free his portable armor stand and tarps. Going over to one of the larger trees, he paced out the distance from the trunk on a relatively root free side, before extending the stand and stabbing it into the ground. Lining up his lance with it, he stabbed it into the tree before lashing them together and throwing the tarp over it. It wasn't the best, but he knew it would keep the rain and wind off.

Heading back to the tent he grabbed his pack. "It's yours now."

The four boys stared at the lashed together shelter before looking at where the rest of Juniper were climbing into the other tent before they entered without another word.

With that annoyance now taken care of, Jaune concentrated on his own issues. He threw the second tarp on the ground, and unhooked his jetpack, setting it where it would be protected from the rain the most. Unsheathing his sword he laid it down next to him before expanding Durandal's shield, and putting it against the worst of the roots. It would make a comfortable enough backrest to lie against. Settling in under the cover, he pulled off his helmet for the first time in hours, breathing in the muggy air and listening to the pitter patter of the rain. It was oddly peaceful out, even knowing there were Grimm lurking in the woods.

Grabbing one of the MREs from his bag, he settled in to let it cook in its pouch, there would be no fire or fun around it tonight. Everyone was too tired for it; it had been a long day. That's what made it so nice to get a few moments of quiet to sit and enjoy the sound of the rain. No heavy thoughts, not moral choices, no leadership. Just the rain on the tarp. A minute later the pouch's color changed, indicating it was done, and he took it out, heedless of the heat for his gauntlets made the best oven mitts.

As he pulled the covering off, he saw a patch of darkness moving outside his shelter, and started to grab for Durandal. But then with all the silence of a shadow, Blake appeared in the entrance, and he relaxed, going back to trying to find the spork. He hadn't forgotten to take it out again before cooking, had he? It always made the meals taste faintly of plastic when he did, though he knew it was just his imagination.

Seeing Blake still standing out there, he gestured for her to come in. She did, sitting down on the end, just under the cover of the tarp. "What's up?"

"Guard shift," she explained, settling in under the tarp, much happier now that there was another layer between her and the rain.

He nodded in understanding. They'd agreed ahead of time to each take two nights on guard per team, so one team would always be fully rested. As Pyrrha had said, it was RWBY's turn tonight. "Well, you're welcome to stay under here for it. If you pull the arms of the stand out a bit further, and extend the lance a bit more, it should let you see the rest of the camp from here."

"Won't that bother you?" asked Blake, arching an eyebrow even as she moved to do what he said.

Jaune could only shrug, grabbing a bite of food before answering. "I know you all well enough I doubt you'll wake me just from sitting there. And honestly, I'll probably sleep better knowing someone I trust is keeping watch. So, how'd you end up with first watch?"

"I asked for it, it was mine and Yang's turn for first and last watch, and I wanted to talk to you." Settling back down under the expanded cover, Blake dimmed the light on her flashlight to a subtle glow.

"About what?" Jaune asked the question around a hurried mouthful of processed potatoes. After his last talk with her, he wasn't sure if we wanted another. Not after his own talk with his team. He felt wrung out, and just wanted to sleep. Tomorrow was his middle watch, and he needed sleep.

"Why are you doing this?" Her question was an echo of their last conversation.

So much for his plans. He scraped up the last of the peas to give himself a second to think, to try to pull together his scrambling thoughts. But Blake spoke into the silence before he could.

"I mean, it should be you in that tent, instead of out here under a tarp. You're not even going to be able to take off your armor, are you?"

"Well, to be fair, the armor isn't all that uncomfortable. With the under suit and seals, it's actually pretty much waterproof and warm, so it's just easier to keep it on." Now he was stalling as his thoughts didn't seem to want to cooperate. And he was afraid of saying the wrong thing, or sending her off into the night again. It would be all too easy to do with as grumpy and tired as he felt. Though at least he wasn't wet.

"Are you really telling me you'd rather be sleeping in here, with your shield as a pillow, rather than in a dry tent in comfortable clothes and a warm sleeping bag?" The biting edge she put in her voice let him know she wasn't buying it, and didn't appreciate the excuse.

He felt a flicker of annoyance flare inside him, but pushed it aside with a sigh, resigning himself to having the conversation. Setting aside his empty container, he focused on Blake. "No, no I'm not."

"So, why are you doing this?" she demanded, turning from her watch to look at him. "We could have left them; it's not that far too the starting area and scroll contact. Then they could have called for help."

"You're right, they're jerks. And we didn't need to do anything else, because you're right again. As incompetent as they are, I bet they could have made it back to the starting zone to call for help. And I can't say I haven't imagined getting revenge on Dove before, even after seeing him do that face slide through the mud earlier. Making him sleep in the rain, with the knowledge I had a nice warm tent would have been pretty good."

"You're making my point for me," pointed out Blake as she cast a glance around camp again.

"I know, just trying to make sense. But even as I thought those things, I realized I'd be as bad as they were. Not for wanting them done, not even for doing them. But for enjoying it. I know the difference between hurting someone to teach a lesson, and hurting someone because you enjoy it. And I never want to be the kind of person that enjoys it. So, maybe I overreacted some with this. But there was also a chance that maybe they'd learn something. Something that'll make them stop being assholes that should be sleeping in a puddle. I mean, Dove used to be a friend of mine. We chased sand Grimm around and went on adventures."

And that was the reason he hadn't wanted to tell his own team earlier. He'd seen both sides of the coin, those that hurt people to teach a lesson, and those that hurt people simply too hurt. The first he could understand to an extent, he had too, but the latter, the latter he would never understand. There was nothing wrong with taking some enjoyment in seeing someone you didn't like suffer a bit, but there was a difference between that and what he'd felt. The urge to glorify in that feeling, to wallow in it. To not just not help them, but to actively push them back down into the mud. And he'd wanted to do anything possible to say away from it.

Blake peered at him with her golden eyes. "And you want that back, after he betrayed you?"

"I...no, not really. That's done. But, I'd like to think he can change back. I mean, I changed. And I guess by hoping he'll change, I'm hoping there's more hope for me. That someday I'll be able to stop second guessing everyone's motivations."

With a shrug, Jaune put down his helmet, having picked it up and started to fiddle with it sometime while he was talking. "Sorry, that's all I've really got for you. Though I think I can say, if this doesn't help them, then I'm washing my hands of it and going back to pretending they don't exist most of the time."

Blake had been looking like she wanted to say something, and the moment he stopped she started speaking. "The world, people, h-"

She cut herself off there, but quickly continued, making Jaune wonder what she had been about to say, "Never really seem to work that way. The real world is not a fairy tale," she finished, repeating her comment to Ruby what seemed like a lifetime ago. "It doesn't just get better."

Jaune had to shake his head in denial at that. "Maybe it's not. I know the dark side of our world. But I have to keep thinking that I can do something about it. Otherwise, why go through with all this? Why do the training, why be a Hunter, when I could be a banker or farmer or something safe? And it's seemed to work out so far. I wouldn't have met Ruby and the rest of you without that attitude."

He thought of his own comment to Ruby back then, his Dad's advice that made him approach her when she was alone in a crater. Now she was one of his best friends, and many an afternoon had been spent over a plate of cookies and a history book or disassembled weapon. If he'd kept following that advice originally, and hadn't given into his fears of betrayal, how much stronger would their relationships be now? Either way, the past was the past, and things had turned out okay after his blow up, the camping together was proof enough of that. He just had to stay focused on the future.

"Maybe," Blake echoed, turning to stare off into the rain, thinking about how his answer seemed to mirror Ruby's. It pulled at something deep inside her, that same spark of optimism that had led her to joining the original White Fang's protests, to believe that the world would change if they just tried hard enough. When had that shifted to believing they had to force that change? To playing Adam's role in those long ago conversations, and seeing her younger self reflected in her friends?

The thought of her old leader brought up another thought. "Jaune?"

"Yeah?"

"I owe you an apology."

Jaune blinked, stunned. That hadn't been what he expected her to say at all. "What?"

"I said, I owe you an apology," this time her tone was slightly testier. "For running out last time we talked. I…"

She paused, hesitating, and Jaune took the opportunity to shift positions to try and get more comfortable. "I grew up poor...and had a friend. He said similar things to what you did last time, about responding to violence with violence. And it made so much sense. Why not take what we needed to survive? But then one day I looked around, and I realized, that was all we were doing. No more talking, or trying to do things peacefully. Just violence…"

"What happened then?" asked Jaune, find himself leaning forward, caught up in her story.

"I made it to Beacon and he... didn't."

"Oh." That would explain her rather negative view.

"So, when you started to say those same things, I heard his echo in you..."

"Then why are you talking to me now? We're on different teams, we don't talk that much. You could have just left me alone."

"True. But I kept watching you, ready to warn my team if I saw you start to go the same way. And then I realized something."

"What?"

"That you aren't him. The fact you helped CDRL tonight was just the final proof. You helped others at Beacon, even when you got rejected like with Rocket-"

"You saw that?" interrupted Jaune, shocked she'd seen his first attempt at helping someone.

"Yes, my locker is nearby, I saw him yell at you. And you just walked away. And you tried again. And again. Not just Faunus, but humans as well. But, Cardin was the first time you actually fought. And when he broke his word, you didn't break his legs. So, I wanted to say sorry...and thank you for trying to help."

"I…." There was nothing he could really say to that, so he settled for an "Alright. Good night Blake."

Jaune pulled his bag over to use as a makeshift pillow. Turning off his flashlight, he let darkness envelopment them except for the dim glow of Blake's lamp.

"Night Jaune," he heard her whisper before he closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep.

Before he fell asleep though, he found himself wondering. If Blake cared so much about helping others, enough to thank him on behalf of the other students, why didn't she try and help as well?

Maybe he'd ask her tomorrow.

* * *

 **Creatures of Grimm: Anura**

These Grimm closely resemble frogs. While not possessing as many natural weapons as most Grimm due to their assumed shape, their clawed hands are reasonably sharp, and they have a mouth filled with small, needle like teeth. However, their true danger is in their tongue, which is strong, prehensile, and capable of paralyzing with a single touch to uncovered flesh as long as contact remains.

Horror stories are told about lone Hunters or travelers, struck by these tongues and left to slowly be eaten by the Anura, or any other Grimm that wander along, drawn to their despair. As such periodic purges of waterways near the Kingdoms are done to try and ensure these Grimm never get close.

Noticeably, some variation exists in this species between areas, with expeditions to the Lost Continent noting poisonous specimens in addition to the normal paralyzing ones. It is unknown if this is due to age, geographical conditions, or if they are a separate subspecies.

* * *

 **Creatures of Grimm: Sobek**

Sobeks are naturally more intelligent, or at least cunning, than the majority of Grimm species, no matter their size. Starting at ten feet long and only growing larger, they are ambush attackers, with their lighter grey skin blending more easily into water and mud then the pitch black of other varieties of Grimm. This coloring seems to be a blending of the natural bone white of the typical Grimm armor with the standard black flesh, supported by the fact their flesh is stronger than a normal Grimm's, though weaker than the armored sections.

The most dangerous thing about them however, is their ability to consume other Grimm to regenerate at a frightening rate, or if unwounded, grow larger. As such, it is standard practice to assume they survived anything but an instant killing blow, as to do otherwise is to invite a fully healed and smarter Sobek to attack again at a later point. And attack again they will.

Additionally, due to this cannibalistic ability, Sobeks are almost never spotted alone, instead traveling with escorts of a variety of other semi-aquatic Grimm, most usually Anuras.

* * *

 **Scholar's Notes:**

I've never led an expedition to Forever Fall, and I never plan to. No signs of human civilization have ever been spotted there, despite the lure that those trees would be. The uneven terrain, filled with numerous gullies, canyons, ravines, and crevices, would normally make ideal protection from the Grimm. However, our ancestors were smart. Or at least experienced. The moment any heavy rains come, water flows down from the mountain and fills those same hideaways to the brim, turning safe havens into death traps.

Only in modern times, with raised construction and elevation mapping, have we succeeded in building there, using the sheltering canyons to carry Dust from the mountains to Vale.

If anyone did succeed in building there before, any evidence has long been washed away.

Instead, humans successfully transplanted the trees, cultivating them in other areas, and leaving the inhospitable terrain as it is, desolate, and filled with Grimm.

Much better to go looking in the Emerald Forest if you want to see ruins. The one tower right outside Beacon was surprisingly informational, even if I ended up blowing out part of the floor by mistake.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, here's part two of the Forever Fall Mission. Hope you're enjoying it so far, and like my new Grimm Creatures.

I'm trying to stick with naming them creatively. Sobeks are named after the Egyptian crocodile god, while Anuras are taken from the scientific name of Frogs.

As seen, I'm also trying to give each Grimm a trick, for lack of a better word, since it seems to be what the creators are doing. So, paralyzing tongues and regenerative cannibalism.

As always, thanks to College Fool for his betaing. I think he looked at the Forever Fall and aftermath chapters so many times he probably has them memorized.

And one jar of sap goes to DinoGuy2000 who found the Invader Zim quote in the last section. If you find one of my more subtle references, or correctly guess where an OC comes from, I'll try and give you a shoutout in return.


	13. Chapter 13

Branches slapped a crossed his head, their bare ends feeling like Grimm claws as they slashed at his face and arms. Jaune winced as a strong one caught on his right arm, jarring it despite how he clutched it protectively to his chest. Behind him he could barely make out movement. It didn't break any branches, rustle leaves, or crunch twigs underfoot, but he knew it was there, knew it was chasing him. And he couldn't let it catch him. That would be bad. So he ran through the woods, stumbling over roots and rocks, trying to get to safety.

But the trees were getting closer together now, slowing him down, making him push through them all. Branches seemed to weave themselves together to block his path like giant spider webs, and the light faded as leaves greedily absorbed it, casting everything into darkness. Then there was a root right between his feet, and he was falling. Instinctively he threw out his hand, his right hand, to catch himself. As his broken arm hit the ground he screamed, white hot pain exploding outward from the darkness even as the shadow darted forward to grab him.

* * *

Jaune awoke without a sound or movement, breathing pattern barely disturbed. For a second he was back at home in bed, the darkness looming over him, a crimson shadow in front. And then he realized where he was, back in his makeshift tent, with Ruby sitting at the entrance on watch.

Carefully, he reached forward, his left arm feeling along his right one, assuring himself it wasn't broken. The feel of his gauntleted fingers tapping on the forearm armor, the way he could flex and bend his aura through it, was more comforting the he could put into words.

"It was just a dream," he whispered to himself, trying to ignore the way his sweat stuck his hair to his forehead.

"Hmm?" Ruby turned, thinking she had heard something behind her.

Jaune lay there, utterly still. He wasn't up for talking, not now. And at some point, as he tried to pretend to sleep, he actually did, Ruby's light humming lulling him away.

* * *

Even with his disturbed sleep, Jaune woke with the sun, unable to shake the habit. Instead he lay there as the crimson wood came alive, blackness slowly fading to shades of red.

"Oi, Jaune, wakey-wakey, time for eggs and bakey!" came Yang's cheerful cry as the clock hit seven.

"I'm awake. Been awake for the past hour." With a tired sigh, Jaune sat up, feeling around for his helmet and Durandal.

"What? And you didn't say anything? You made me sit here all by my Long-some? Just for that, you get the veggie omelet ration pack."

"What? No!" Panic scorched through Jaune's veins, before rationality reasserted itself. "Hah, I have my own supply of meals. You can't make me eat one. "

"I know, but it got you awake. Now, throw me your veggie ones," demanded Yang.

Jaune eyed her suspiciously. Why on Remnant would anybody actually want one of those things? If it had been up to him, the things would never be in the ration kit sets. But the quartermaster wouldn't let him cherry pick the ones he wanted. No, he had to take full sets. And full sets always included vegetable omelets and the almost as hated ham slice meal.

"Oh relax Jaune, the vomlets are for Cardinal." She gave him a broad smile as she held out her hand for his. "I know they'll want breakfast, and I intend to give it to them."

"You are a wicked, wicked woman Yang. And a genius. We got extra, so they can have Ham Slice for dinner."

"Who's the wicked one now Jaune?" With that parting shot, Yang collected his unwanted ration kits and headed off to wake her teammates.

But Cardinal didn't get up then. They didn't get up when they started breaking down camp, and they didn't get up when Nora called. It wasn't until Juniper and RWBY were about to leave that they finally stirred. "What?"

"We're leaving in ten minutes, with or without you, so you better hurry."

The thought of Dove having to eat a nearly cold vomlet on the go warmed Jaune's heart as they got ready for the march ahead.

That good mood swiftly vanished as they marched. Even though it had dawned rain free, it was still slow going. The trails were still muddy and treacherous, potential missteps threatening to send them sliding off the high ground and into the flood filled streams below.

And they were running late, the detour the night before to save Cardinal and the messy terrain slowing them down. They'd put time in the schedule for it, but it still meant they were moving faster than they would have liked.

The hike was mostly in silence, only two things splitting the quiet of the forest. The first were Ruby or Pyrrha's shots as they sniped any Grimm before they could become a problem. While it left them unmolested, it also gave the rest little to do.

The other though, the other was the constant complaining of Cardinal, specifically Sky, but occasionally Russel. Though he was more likely to make a crass comment and start braying with laughter. It started with the breakfast and continued from there, everything from the mud to the rocks to the trees to the Grimm to the fact they weren't stopping for lunch.

But it was as Sky complained about his boots hurting his feet for the tenth time, with Russel chiming in about getting one of the girls to give them a massage that Jaune snapped.

"Enough!" Sky froze, his mouth still open, as the rest of Cardinal gave Jaune a wary eye.

He'd wager Cardin at least was as sick of it as he was, based on the glare he saw him shoot Sky. But he'd also bet Cardin would never actually do anything about it as long as Juniper and RWBY were nearby; he'd think he'd be losing face.

Whatever his motivation for not stopping Sky earlier, arrogance, or a pathological need to see the other teams suffered even if he did as well, it didn't matter now. What mattered to Jaune was he was tired, they had a long hike in front of them, and all he had to look forward to was another night under the tarp and the third watch shift. It was the worst in his opinion, knowing he'd have to wake up in the middle of the night, only to get to go back to sleep to be awoken what felt like five minutes later. And Sky Would. Not. Shut. Up!

Slowly he stalked closer to Sky, his face covered entirely by his helmet, so all the other boy could see was a metallic visor that reflected his own nervous face back at him. "I have walked farther than you. I have walked farther than you on a broken leg. I have walked farther than you on a broken leg with no food and no sleep. We are late. You are not hurt, you had food, and you slept in a tent. So, you Will Shut Up, and You Will Keep Walking, or you can feel free to hand my tent back to me, and go your own way. I'm sure the Grimm would be more than happy to listen to your complaints."

As he stormed forward, resuming the march, he saw Nora raise her hands as if to applaud, but Ren grabbed her before she could.

"You're lucky he beat me to it," Yang remarked as he pulled ahead, "I was about to punch one of you out and leave the rest of you to carry him. What's that old saying, 'A bird in hand is worth two in the bush? There's some bushes over there, keep talking if you want to find out if it's true."

Jaune pushed forward, trying to keep some room between himself and Cardinal. All his talk to Blake and his team the night before, and then he ruins any credibility by yelling at Cardinal. He was tired, but that dream had rattled him, more than he felt like admitting. And then to hear Sky complaining about walking of all things...

A shape moved in the corner of his vision and he realized Pyrrha was next to him, easily matching his stride. They walked in silence for a while, until murmurs of other conversations started to fill the air, thankfully not complaints. Or if they were, Cardinal was keeping it to themselves. That's when she chose to talk. "Jaune. What you said? Was it true? Did it have anything to do with your other trip?"

"It was the same trip."

"Then why?"

"Training. I don't want to talk about it." And he didn't, not now, not when he was already irritated. He knew himself, there was too much chance he'd take it out on her.

Pyrrha gasped softly, her hand coming to her mouth. "But Jaune, your father-"

"No!" Already on edge, that had been the final straw for his temper, and exactly what he'd been afraid of. But as he whirled on her, arms clenched at his sides, all he saw was her concerned face looking back at him. Unable to face that, he turned back, only to realize all the other conversations had died with his yell, the rest of the group staring at them.

Refusing to meet their eyes, he instead grabbed Pyrrha's arm and pulled them into a faster speed, yelling over his shoulder, "We're scouting ahead."

He still didn't want to talk about it, but he couldn't let it end like that, not with him yelling at her when all she did was get concerned for him.

She let him pull her, let him set the pace, and soon they were a fair distance in front of the others, but still just in sight. So he slowed, confident they wouldn't be overheard, and let go of her arm. She didn't say anything, merely waited for him to speak.

Taking a deep breath, he released it slowly, before reaching up and pulling off his helmet, placing it on Durandal's hilt over his shoulder so he didn't have to carry it as they walked. He wanted to actually be able to see her for this, with nothing to hide behind.

"I-" He started before stopping, struggling with what to say, with how to say it. He didn't want to speak of this at all, but he couldn't have her thinking that, not about his Dad. "Look, it wasn't my Dad. Just…"

He grappled with his thoughts, trying to think of something else to say, to explain at least some of it. Because it wasn't fair to just leave it at that, not to her. Then an idea struck him, the perfect thing. "Do you know the number one injury hunters suffer?"

Pyrrha blinked, momentarily thrown off by the sudden topic change. "No?"

Jaune continued on like she hadn't answered. "I mean, we have our aura. It protects us from most anything. But the number one injury hunters get? Broken ankles, or legs. Really limbs if you want to get technical, but apparently ankles are the worst. Even with our aura, physics is a bitch."

He was rambling, he knew it, but it was so much easier to try and approach the topic from the side. He didn't think he had the guts to say it straight out, not when he knew she'd have that look of sympathy and support on her face. He couldn't handle that, not right not. And he didn't want it. He'd made it through, he didn't need sympathy. "All this bad terrain we go through, you step wrong, and crack. Aura or no aura, your leg's going to bend. And that kills when you're alone. Suddenly, you can't run, can't fight, can barely even hobble depending on how bad it is. And the Grimm are always there, watching. With teams it's different, but alone..."

Taking another breath he paused his story as they walked for a bit in silence, before picking it back up. "And really, you get used to having aura. It's a safety net, we all depend on it. How it cushions blows, turns excruciating into painful, painful into tolerable, tolerable into ignorable. And we need it, even initiation would have killed us all without it."

Another breath, another pause, giving Pyrrha time to think over his words. They rang with a grain of truth. How many fights had she been in at the Arena that would have killed a civilian, and they both walked away with bruises at the most? Even her last bout in class would have left her opponent with a crushed windpipe at the very beginning, let alone the bullet holes and blade strikes later. True wounds or lasting damage were incredibly rare for what they did. But could it be any other way? If all her matches had ended with her opponents broken and bleeding, instead of beaten, how long until the Grimm were drawn in?

Abruptly, Jaune picked up his story again, tearing her from her thoughts. "So, something like that happens, a leg, an arm, an ankle, breaks, and most go into shock. Can't think straight. Even if they have a chance to get away, they waste it. So, their first broken bone is their last. And I'm not making it up, believe me. I looked it up after I got back, every single bit. And it's all true, all there. Reconstructed from what bodies and Scrolls they can find. They just don't like to tell us, it lowers moral. But, they won't hide it if you ask. Or maybe they do, and I just asked the one person who would tell me."

It had all been calmly explained to him as his leg was broken. And then, when that healed, his arm, to ensure he could use both hands equally well. Afterwards, he needed to know it was true, needed to know it had been worth it. When he made it to the Library, Ms. Mauve had shown him the report, with its cold clinical writing and damning graphs. She'd had the same look on her face that Pyrrha had now. He hated that look; he didn't need the pity. He'd made it through, and he was strong. It was worth it, it had to be.

Reaching over his shoulder, Jaune grabbed his helmet again. But he had one final thing to say before he slid it back on, featureless metal replacing his blue eyes. "Someone made sure that if that ever happened to me, I wouldn't be one of the ones who never makes it back. You know the most ironic part of it though? I ended up with a Semblance where that would never be an issue... But, it wasn't my dad. Never him."

Considering the conversation over, Jaune turned to look back, make sure the others were still in sight before he kept walking. So, he was surprised when Pyrrha grabbed him, pulling him into a hug. "Thank you for telling me Jaune. You didn't need to, so, thank you for doing so. And, remember. We are partners Jaune, I care for you. Your team cares for you. And if I was not the one making sure you were fine, it would have been Nora. You might not have noticed it, but both she and Ren tensed up when you spoke. They wanted to help."

Letting go, she stepped back to give him space. Emotions he'd tried to press down were escaping, the tiredness eating away at his self-control. "You're all better than I deserve."

That made her shake her head, denying his words. "No, we're exactly what you deserve. We are a team Jaune, a good one, and part of that team is you. We wouldn't be what we are without you."

"Right." The others were catching up to them now that they'd stopped moving.

When the rest of their team reached them, he expected a joke or insult from Cardinal, but they stayed quiet as the group marched on, ignoring the way Ren's hand came up to tap Jaune's shoulder, or how Nora suddenly started chattering on about the crimson leaves and lightning strikes. Jaune was almost positive she was doing it on purpose this time to keep the atmosphere light, but even knowing that he couldn't keep a small smile from growing on his lips. Not that anyone could see it with his helmet.

What he didn't know was the talk that the rest of Juniper and Team RWBY had with Team Cardinal the moment he and Pyrrha had moved ahead. All he did know was that Sky didn't complain once for the rest of the day.

That night, as Pyrrha sat in the dark on her watch, listening to the quiet breathing of her partner behind her, she pondered the latest piece of the puzzle she'd gotten. Things were falling into place.

* * *

"So, I was thinking it's bad we couldn't get signal out here, at least not enough to talk to others." Ruby strolled up next to Jaune, Crescent Rose leaning on her shoulder. Everyone was much cheerier today, the sun from the day before had dried out the mud, giving them firm footing once again, while the flooded byways had mostly emptied, making it much easier to navigate.

It also helped that Team Cardinal was hanging at the back of the group, giving the other two teams their space. Perhaps, most surprising of all, was that they'd actually gotten up with the rest of them. So, they were on track to arrive at the pickup point with a comfortable safety margin. "And I was thinking we should do something about that."

"I'm not letting you weld a signal booster onto my armor Ruby. Just cause I carried Nora doesn't mean I can carry one of those," Jaune said with a smile. The smallest ones he knew of were the size of light poles, and the range they gave hardly made it worthwhile unless they were planted in a line, like say along a railroad.

He could just imagine it now, first it would be the signal booster. Then some hydraulics to compensate for the weight and add some extra punch. Then the rocket pods. If he wasn't careful she'd turn his personal armor into a mech.

"Hey, I think you just called me fat! Off with his head!" Nora leapt forward, Magnhild shifting to hammer form in her hands, but Ren grabbed the back of her shirt.

The slight smirk on Ren's face let Jaune know he was in for it. "Save it for the next practice Nora. Then I'm sure if Jaune still thinks that, he'll be happy to play tag with you."

Tag with Nora involved dodging her hammer until the unfortunate target dropped from exhaustion, and then got nailed anyway. And now he was volunteered for it.

Ruby snorted next to him, cutting off the laugh before it could form, and gave him a light slap on the shoulder. She wanted no part of that game, and everyone knew you didn't tease a girl about her weight. "No, not like that. I was thinking, even if I couldn't transmit, when I tried reaching Beacon it did connect, though it dropped afterwards. Maybe we could figure out some kind of code for that."

"Like Morse code?" asked Blake, having overhead Ruby's plan. She was more than familiar with the code, it was great for communicating with people in public without drawing attention.

"Yeah, like that," nodded Ruby in agreement, before pausing. "What's that?"

"A code based on short and long lengths of something. It could be anything from a light being covered and uncovered to finger taps on a table. When written, it translates to dots and dashes, with letters each having their own combination," explained Blake.

This was ringing a bell in Jaune's head, and he tried to remember from where. Then it hit him. "Oh, you mean like back during the Great War, when the watchtower Beacon used to be would communicate to Patch's lighthouse."

Blake nodded. "Exactly. It's where the schools got their names from."

"Well we can use that."

"I hate to burst your bubble Ruby, but I think that might be a bit complicated for relying on a non-transmitting signal." Blake nodded in agreement.

But Ruby wasn't deterred. "Even if we can't use Moors"

"Morse," corrected Blake.

"Morse code. We can use the idea. Like three quick calls means we need help."

"That could actually work," acknowledged Blake. Sure, it would only be good in certain situations, and only in some areas, but one or two quick codes wouldn't be that hard to remember. And even the repeated calls would serve as a warning if anything got through.

"Well, if you work one out, let me know, and I'll make sure JPNR will learn it. But I have to ask, what about one and two calls?"

Ruby gave him a smile before vanishing ahead in a swirl of rose petals to start pestering Weiss. "Those could just be butt dials, duh."

* * *

They'd arrived at the departure point with an hour to spare, and already most of their classmates had filtered in, and those who hadn't were within scroll contact range. Cardinal disappeared almost immediately, which they weren't planning to complain about.

"Please load your sap into the Bullhead to my right, all additional gear can be loaded to my left. All empty sap containers will be returned to you after you turn in your mission reports and map data." Professor Goodwitch's voice turned sharp, her riding crop striking out to point at Yang. "Where are you going with those sap containers? I said sap goes to my right."

"But these are ours," Yang protested, hugging the bundle of containers. Next to her Nora was doing the same with her own. "We already put the required ones away."

Glynda rubbed the bridge of her nose, already feeling a headache coming on. "And what could you possibly want that sap for? They sell both processed and unprocessed sap in every grocery store."

"Not this kind," replied Nora proudly. "Our sap is the sappiest."

"Wait, what?" At that point Professor Peach wandered over, parasol in hand. Somehow, despite the fact the forest floor was covered in leaves, the hem of her pink dress refused to catch on any of them. "Are you telling me you children actually went into the forest deep enough to find a mature tree?"

Yang blinked in surprise. "Well, yeah. Weren't we supposed to?"

"No!" snapped Goodwitch. "We expected you to stay within scroll contact range of the railroad."

Jaune got a sinking feeling in his gut when he heard her say that. "Oh."

"And do you know how rare it is to find mature trees? They need to be a certain size and age, and not to have been tapped for a certain time." And then Professor Peach was on a long rant about fermentation processes, local symbiotic yeast relationships, pressures per square inch, and environmental considerations. Jaune felt his eyes begin to glaze over.

Thankfully Professor Goodwitch stepped in. "Peach…"

But the Professor wasn't finished yet, and ignored the pointing riding crop like it was a buzzing fly, absently knocking it aside with her parasol. "If you're right, A's for all of you. Now, where did you locate them?"

"We have the map data," Nora managed to stutter out, trying to keep herself between the maniac professor and the sap storage container Mk. III. For some reason, she suddenly had an idea of what it was like to be Ren between her and pancakes. As quick as the sympathy appeared, it vanished. Pancakes were awesome.

"You have the map data…A plusses! For the semester!" With that Professor Peach made a dive for the cargo container, but the doors slammed shut before she could reach them.

Glynda lowered her riding crop as the other professor bounced off the closed doors. "Ahem. Professor, I believe it would be best if you waited until we returned to Beacon for that?"

"Oh...right, quite right." She slumped, defeated by Glynda's glare. Looking around and seeing the students staring at them she suddenly snapped up, pointing her parasol like marshal's baton. "Children, hurry into the Bullheads now. Time's a wastin. We have experiments to perform."

That left RWBY and JPNR basically alone with Professor Goodwitch, no other students wanting to be near the stressed looking professor.

"She does realize we're not in her class until next semester, right?" asked Yang, reaching up with her free hand to scratch her hair; still somewhat shocked by their contact with the eccentric professor.

"Probably not," admitted Glynda with a sigh, before suddenly realizing who she was talking to. Immediately her eyes sharpened. "And you, what were you thinking going that deep into the forest?"

Even if they didn't mean to, everyone's eye's flickered toward Jaune before staring straight ahead. It was nothing, more an arrested motion then a true glance, but Glynda caught it.

Jaune froze as he found the full force of her glare focused at him.

"Uh, that you wanted us to? I mean, you gave us five days…and we could hike from one end of the starting area to another in a day if we really tried and didn't rest."

"That wasn't a starting area, it was the mission zone," snapped Goodwitch, her glare still pinning him in place. "This trip was simply meant to get you used to extended missions outside the city. For most, this was their first such excursion. We don't expect things like what you say you did until your second semester Hunter shadowing mission at the absolute soonest."

"Really?" Looking around he saw most of his friends nodding, with only Blake not joining in. "But I thought Signal…"

"Yes Mr. Arc." Glynda let out another sigh, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Though I suppose I cannot fault you, coming from your unique situation as you did. Your father was never the most restrained."

Her glare sharpened again, "I expect your mission report to be that much more detailed due to going out of boundaries! Show me that you know exactly what you were doing! And that you inherited your mother's report writing skills, not your father's. Also, for your information, Signal traditionally only does day trips."

"Yes ma'am!" Jaune felt himself instinctively saluting, and held that pose until, with a final flash of her green eyes, Glynda stalked away to harangue a few slow moving students.

Under the hustling of both Professors, everything was quickly stowed and the Bullheads took off, leaving the two teams facing each other. "So...sorry about that. Was it really your first time out?"

Ruby gave a small shrug. "I mean, our Uncle took us on day trips, but Yang and I went to Signal. And this trip was awesome! So much better than just staying near the tracks."

"Even if it meant I could have got my music sooner," added Yang as she pulled out her earbuds.

"Signal as well," answered Ren, gesturing to include Nora in his answer. "Never did anything like this before."

"I attended Sanctum. And while there were optional overnight trips during the breaks, I was always on the dueling circuit," answered Pyrrha. "So I never attended them. Weiss, what was your schooling like?"

"Strictly regimented. I attended the preparatory day school, as I also had responsibilities to my father and the Schnee Company. If the boarding school students had a different curriculum, I wasn't aware of it. And we already know you," her inflection made it clear she was talking about Jaune, but not in a bad way, "didn't go to a combat school, so that only leaves you?"

She turned to look at Blake, who was shaking her head. "I didn't go to a combat school either. But I've actually been out before." Everyone expected her to continue, but she didn't, and an almost awkward silence fell between.

But only for a few seconds. "What does it matter though?"

Everyone turned to stare at Ruby. "I mean, so what if we went further than they planned? We had a plan, we did our mission, and we got back, even with the tagalongs. We rocked! Go team RWBY!"

"Hey, aren't you forgetting about us?" asked Jaune, nudging her with his foot as his mood picked back up, her cheerfulness was infectious. "We did stuff too you know."

"We'll be sure to take that under consideration when the profits of our little venture get split," answered Weiss, a playful smile on her face as she pretended to inspect her nails. The fact they were sure to get extra credit and recognition for their efforts had put her in a good mood.

"Speaking of," Yang continued in a low voice the others had to lean in to hear, "I have a contact on the shady side of town who will take this all off our hands. Unless any of you know how to refine this stuff?"

"Not at all. But I'll ask the Schnee Company for market prices before you go. We wouldn't want to get cheated after all." This was her first large business deal, shady or not, and she wouldn't let Yang get anything less than an amazing price.

But her teammate just shook her head. "Oh, he knows better than to cheat me. But he might take a slightly bigger cut than normal though. I kinda wrecked his club the last time I was there."

"Oh, that sounds like a story we've got to hear." They settled in to listen as the Bullhead continued through the air.

* * *

 **Scholars Note** :

The Trees of Forever Fall (Sanguinem Saccharum Acer) commonly known as Blood Maples are one of the many mysteries of Remnant. We have records going back millennia of their cultivation, with no true knowledge of which ancient kingdom started the practice of tapping them for their sweet sap. While they are grown in the agricultural district, and there is an emergency reserve of their sap kept in its concentrated syrup from, primary production of the sap is done by the smaller towns outside of Vale in massive farms. This is the lifeline of those towns, ensuring they get a steady stream of Hunters and convoys coming out on a regular basis for pickup.

Despite this, the trees themselves remain a mystery. We have documented proof that older trees produce an alcoholic sap that is quite palatable raw and can be made into numerous pleasing vintages once refined. Such beverages were once restricted only to nobles and royalty, and remain quite valued today, seen as a status symbol. There have been attempts to create similar beverages using the non-alcoholic sap as a base, but I know the results simply don't compare. Then again, maybe it was the bartender that made drinking it so much better…

However, we still have no idea why this occurs, and only in a small portion of the wild population, primarily located in Forever Fall and more northern climates.

Numerous theories have been introduced over the years, from the more reasonable of specific soil conditions to outlandish theories such as a trap made by the Grimm to lure in humans. The most recent was proposed by Beacon's own Professor Peach. She believes it is a combination of factors, consisting of older trees producing more sap which is kept under pressure, naturally heating it, and priming it for a symbiotic yeast located in the region, which consumes it, secreting the alcohol. This keeps the sap from freezing during the colder months, allowing the tree to continue growing. Her theory does neatly explain why in the thousands of years of cultivation we have no records of farms ever producing alcoholic sap.

If Forever Fall is indeed the trees origin point, I might be able to trace their spread outwards from there. If so, it will put me one step closer to finding it...

* * *

 **Author's Note** : Well, here's the conclusion of the Forever Fall trip. Hope you enjoyed the expanded adventure. It never made sense to me resource wise to send out Bullheads for what was essentially a day trip within hiking distance of Beacon. So, I expanded it. Students get their first outdoor experience, new pilots get an easy training assignment, and they can deliver supplies.

We get to see some of the benefits of Jaune's training with his Dad, mainly the local missions he had done, and I got to expand some on the other schools for the other Kingdoms.

Next chapter will have Semblance Reveals.

Once again thanks to College Fool for betaing.

And sorry for the delay, between work and finding the story of Billy-Bob, Space Trucker, my time disappeared.


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